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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. last — to go on
  3. last — final
  4. last — finally
  5. toast — bread
  6. court — for sport
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. date — the fruit
  9. swing — in golf
  10. field — for sport
  11. field — a subject
  12. swing — to play on
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. cap — of ice
  15. field — farmland
  16. cap — a lid
  17. cap — a hat
  18. court — of a king
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. court — of law
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. toast — the most admired

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