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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. snap — to click
  4. swing — to play on
  5. track — to keep track
  6. key — in music
  7. cold — an illness
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. deal — to handle
  10. swing — music
  11. mine — for digging
  12. track — a song
  13. track — a path
  14. key — the most important part
  15. swing — in golf
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. season — of the year
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. season — in sport
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. key — for a lock
  24. cold — not warm

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