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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. swing — in golf
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. swing — music
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. charge — electricity
  8. file — a document
  9. content — happy
  10. charge — a price
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. charge — in control
  17. kid — child
  18. file — a line of people
  19. kid — to tease
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. file — a tool
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. content — the amount

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