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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 120 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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. mug — a cup
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. swing — music
  5. swing — in golf
  6. ball — a dance
  7. mug — a face
  8. root — of a word
  9. swing — to play on
  10. mug — to rob
  11. race — a contest
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. row — to paddle
  14. lie — to recline
  15. wound — an injury
  16. race — humankind
  17. root — of a plant
  18. row — a line
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. root — the cause
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. wound — an injury
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. race — the arms race

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