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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. band — a music group
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. rule — a law
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. rule — government
  8. band — a ring
  9. season — of the year
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. pass — a permit
  14. ball — a dance
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. swing — in golf
  17. swing — music
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. ball — a great time
  22. dip — to sink
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. season — in sport

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