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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're almost out of ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. spring — of water
  4. rest — what's left
  5. cold — not warm
  6. pop — to visit
  7. swing — in golf
  8. cold — an illness
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. pop — music
  11. rest — a break
  12. rest — what's left
  13. mug — a cup
  14. wound — an injury
  15. swing — music
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. spring — the season
  18. mug — to rob
  19. wound — an injury
  20. spring — a coil
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. mug — a face
  23. swing — to play on
  24. jam — a tight spot

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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