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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. swing — music
  3. swing — in golf
  4. roll — a list
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. chest — of your body
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. chest — a box
  11. stem — to come from
  12. fork — in a road
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. swing — to play on
  15. cap — of ice
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. chest — of your body
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. mine — for digging
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. roll — a cake
  23. cap — a lid
  24. cap — a hat

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