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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. land — a country
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. swing — to play on
  5. mug — a cup
  6. mug — a face
  7. march — music
  8. foot — a measure
  9. land — ground
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. swing — in golf
  12. field — for sport
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. field — farmland
  15. deal — to handle
  16. squash — to crush
  17. squash — the sport
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. mug — to rob
  20. march — the month
  21. swing — music
  22. march — the month
  23. land — to come down
  24. field — a subject

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