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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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. ground — a position
  3. prune — to trim
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. swing — in golf
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. object — to protest
  9. cap — of ice
  10. swing — music
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. object — an aim
  13. clip — for paper
  14. prune — to trim
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. object — a thing
  17. chair — a leader
  18. swing — to play on
  19. ground — crushed
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. cap — a hat
  22. cap — a lid
  23. clip — to cut
  24. clip — a video

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