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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. current — happening now
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. swing — in golf
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. key — for a lock
  7. march — the month
  8. march — the month
  9. current — electric
  10. wake — a trail
  11. bulb — for light
  12. march — music
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. swing — music
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. bulb — for light
  18. field — a subject
  19. field — farmland
  20. key — in music
  21. swing — to play on
  22. key — the most important part
  23. field — for sport
  24. current — of water

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