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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. swing — in golf
  3. spell — letters
  4. last — to go on
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. spell — magic
  7. chip — to eat
  8. swing — to play on
  9. ground — a position
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. last — finally
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. swing — music
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. spell — a short time
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. kid — child
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. kid — to tease
  21. chip — for betting
  22. ground — crushed
  23. kick — in football
  24. ground — the earth

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