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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. wind — moving air
  3. content — happy
  4. drill — a practice
  5. spell — a short time
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. spell — letters
  8. drill — the tool
  9. cap — a lid
  10. toast — bread
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. content — the amount
  13. swing — in golf
  14. cap — of ice
  15. spell — magic
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. swing — to play on
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. cap — a hat
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. wind — moving air
  24. drill — army training

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