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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. swing — in golf
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. land — ground
  7. pass — a permit
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. file — a line of people
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. craft — boats
  15. land — a country
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. craft — a skill
  18. file — a document
  19. dip — to sink
  20. swing — music
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. file — a tool
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. land — to come down

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