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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 116 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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. wound — an injury
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. swing — to play on
  5. stock — goods
  6. swing — in golf
  7. pop — soda
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. stock — shares
  11. board — a committee
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. rule — a law
  14. wound — an injury
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. swing — music
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. board — to get on
  21. kid — to tease
  22. pop — music
  23. rule — government
  24. kid — child

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