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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 assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. object — to protest
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. club — a group
  5. club — for golf
  6. club — for dancing
  7. fine — high quality
  8. track — a path
  9. ground — the earth
  10. swing — in golf
  11. chest — a box
  12. ground — crushed
  13. track — a song
  14. content — the amount
  15. chest — of your body
  16. object — an aim
  17. ground — a position
  18. chest — of your body
  19. track — to keep track
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. content — happy
  22. object — a thing
  23. swing — music
  24. swing — to play on

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