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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. row — a line
  3. chair — a leader
  4. swing — in golf
  5. mug — to rob
  6. swing — to play on
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. field — farmland
  9. mug — a cup
  10. mug — a face
  11. cap — a hat
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. lie — to recline
  14. row — to paddle
  15. staff — employees
  16. cap — a lid
  17. staff — a stick
  18. cap — of ice
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. staff — employees
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. field — a subject
  23. field — for sport
  24. row — a quarrel

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