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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. track — a song
  3. drill — a practice
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. mine — for digging
  6. rash — a series
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. rash — hasty
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. pitch — completely
  11. march — music
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. march — the month
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. track — to keep track
  18. drill — army training
  19. drill — the tool
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. swing — to play on
  22. march — the month
  23. swing — in golf
  24. track — a path

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