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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. lean — to bend
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. ground — crushed
  5. swing — music
  6. ground — a position
  7. land — to come down
  8. swing — to play on
  9. land — a country
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. ground — the earth
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. toast — bread
  14. hand — in cards
  15. rest — a break
  16. lean — thin
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. land — ground
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. rest — what's left
  22. hand — help
  23. rest — what's left
  24. lean — to rest against

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