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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. kid — to tease
  3. swing — music
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. kid — child
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. rule — government
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. swing — in golf
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. spell — letters
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. swing — to play on
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. rash — a series
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. spell — magic
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. rash — hasty
  23. spell — a short time
  24. racket — for tennis

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