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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. swing — in golf
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. march — the month
  5. march — the month
  6. swing — music
  7. cold — an illness
  8. row — a line
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. season — of the year
  15. cold — not warm
  16. prune — to trim
  17. prune — to trim
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. march — music
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. season — in sport
  22. swing — to play on
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. trunk — of a tree

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