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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. cold — an illness
  3. pop — to visit
  4. season — of the year
  5. craft — boats
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. cap — a lid
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. cold — not warm
  10. swing — music
  11. hand — in cards
  12. craft — a skill
  13. cap — of ice
  14. season — in sport
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. swing — to play on
  17. object — an aim
  18. hand — help
  19. object — a thing
  20. cap — a hat
  21. pop — soda
  22. pop — music
  23. object — to protest
  24. swing — in golf

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