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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. swing — in golf
  4. charge — electricity
  5. swing — to play on
  6. ground — crushed
  7. root — of a plant
  8. last — to go on
  9. pit — in a race
  10. ground — a position
  11. charge — in control
  12. charge — a price
  13. kid — to tease
  14. ground — the earth
  15. tear — from crying
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. last — final
  18. pit — a hole
  19. tear — to rip
  20. root — the cause
  21. last — finally
  22. root — of a word
  23. kid — child
  24. tear — from crying

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