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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 120 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 muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. swing — to play on
  3. rock — a stone
  4. track — a song
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. land — ground
  8. rock — music
  9. swing — music
  10. pitch — completely
  11. chest — a box
  12. land — to come down
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. track — to keep track
  15. charge — in control
  16. swing — in golf
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. charge — electricity
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. chest — of your body
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. land — a country
  23. chest — of your body
  24. charge — a price

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