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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. swing — to play on
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. roll — a list
  5. foot — a measure
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. can — a tin
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. roll — a cake
  11. can — a tin
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. march — the month
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. march — music
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. kid — to tease
  19. swing — music
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. swing — in golf
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. march — the month
  24. kid — child

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