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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. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. swing — music
  3. mine — for digging
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. pitch — completely
  14. bark — to shout
  15. chip — to eat
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. chip — for betting
  18. toast — bread
  19. sharp — clever
  20. swing — to play on
  21. swing — in golf
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. chip — in a computer

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