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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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. present — the time now
  3. rash — a series
  4. rash — hasty
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. tear — from crying
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. tear — to rip
  9. ground — a position
  10. spring — of water
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. chest — of your body
  13. present — a gift
  14. swing — music
  15. chest — a box
  16. ground — crushed
  17. chest — of your body
  18. ground — the earth
  19. swing — to play on
  20. spring — a coil
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. present — there
  23. tear — from crying
  24. spring — the season

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