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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 120 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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. row — a line
  3. chip — to eat
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. cold — an illness
  7. content — the amount
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. pound — a weight
  10. row — to paddle
  11. swing — music
  12. pop — soda
  13. chip — for betting
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. pop — to visit
  16. content — happy
  17. swing — to play on
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. swing — in golf
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. lie — to recline
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. cold — not warm

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