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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. bear — the animal
  5. suit — in cards
  6. prune — to trim
  7. suit — clothes
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. ball — a great time
  10. suit — to fit
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. prune — to trim
  13. swing — to play on
  14. swing — music
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. bear — the animal
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. swing — in golf
  21. cold — not warm
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. cold — an illness
  24. ball — a round shape

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