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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. field — for sport
  4. wax — to grow
  5. field — a subject
  6. last — to go on
  7. ground — a position
  8. lie — to recline
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. ground — crushed
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. field — farmland
  15. ground — the earth
  16. swing — to play on
  17. last — finally
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. last — final
  21. wake — a trail
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. swing — music
  24. racket — a loud noise

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