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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 116 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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. ground — the earth
  3. spring — of water
  4. ground — crushed
  5. ground — a position
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. spring — the season
  8. swing — to play on
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. press — newspapers
  11. press — a publisher
  12. net — after costs
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. perch — the fish
  15. press — to push
  16. snap — to click
  17. ball — a dance
  18. swing — music
  19. net — in sport
  20. spring — a coil
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. ball — a great time
  23. net — for catching
  24. ball — a round shape

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