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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 coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. root — the cause
  3. swing — music
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. chest — of your body
  6. mine — for digging
  7. spring — of water
  8. mug — a face
  9. spell — a short time
  10. spring — the season
  11. wind — moving air
  12. spring — a coil
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. spell — letters
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. swing — to play on
  17. chest — a box
  18. wind — moving air
  19. mug — to rob
  20. mug — a cup
  21. chest — of your body
  22. root — of a word
  23. spell — magic
  24. root — of a plant

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