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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. swing — in golf
  3. swing — music
  4. track — to keep track
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. march — the month
  8. march — music
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. wind — moving air
  12. track — a song
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. track — a path
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. chip — to eat
  17. wind — moving air
  18. march — the month
  19. chip — for betting
  20. cold — an illness
  21. cold — not warm
  22. row — to paddle
  23. swing — to play on
  24. row — a line

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