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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. swing — in golf
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. swing — music
  5. swing — to play on
  6. chair — a leader
  7. content — happy
  8. scale — in music
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. track — to keep track
  11. fork — in a road
  12. track — a song
  13. prune — to trim
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. prune — to trim
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. track — a path
  18. content — the amount
  19. rash — a series
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. rash — hasty
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. rash — on the skin

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