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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 116 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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. swing — in golf
  3. spring — of water
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. current — of water
  6. spring — a coil
  7. content — happy
  8. land — a country
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. ground — the earth
  11. land — to come down
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. current — happening now
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. content — the amount
  16. spring — the season
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. ground — a position
  19. swing — music
  20. land — ground
  21. wake — a trail
  22. current — electric
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. swing — to play on

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