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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. pop — to visit
  3. pop — music
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. season — of the year
  6. season — in sport
  7. field — a subject
  8. chip — to eat
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. field — for sport
  11. mug — a face
  12. mug — a cup
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. mug — to rob
  15. chip — for betting
  16. swing — music
  17. swing — to play on
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. dip — to sink
  20. swing — in golf
  21. wind — moving air
  22. pop — soda
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. wind — moving air

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