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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. cap — a hat
  4. cap — of ice
  5. cap — a lid
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. wind — moving air
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. wind — moving air
  10. swing — in golf
  11. present — a gift
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. deal — to handle
  16. present — there
  17. prune — to trim
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. swing — to play on
  20. prune — to trim
  21. swing — music
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. mine — for digging
  24. mine — an explosive

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