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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. march — the month
  3. ground — a position
  4. march — the month
  5. swing — to play on
  6. swing — in golf
  7. hand — help
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. swing — music
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. kick — in football
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. chip — to eat
  15. hand — in cards
  16. lie — to recline
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. ground — the earth
  20. march — music
  21. bound — obliged
  22. chip — for betting
  23. bound — certain
  24. bound — tied together

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