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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. rush — hurry
  3. pitch — completely
  4. dip — to sink
  5. chest — a box
  6. swing — in golf
  7. bulb — for light
  8. chest — of your body
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. march — the month
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. chest — of your body
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. rest — what's left
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. rest — a break
  18. rest — what's left
  19. swing — music
  20. bulb — for light
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. march — music
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. march — the month

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com