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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. swing — to play on
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. track — to keep track
  7. swing — music
  8. track — a song
  9. fall — to drop
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. field — a subject
  12. field — farmland
  13. roll — a list
  14. track — a path
  15. swing — in golf
  16. fall — to drop
  17. field — for sport
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. press — newspapers
  20. fall — the season
  21. press — a publisher
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. press — to push

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