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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. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. chip — for betting
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. prune — to trim
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. swing — to play on
  11. track — a song
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. track — to keep track
  14. track — a path
  15. scale — size or range
  16. prune — to trim
  17. swing — music
  18. pitch — completely
  19. swing — in golf
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. wax — to grow
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. scale — in music
  24. chip — to eat

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