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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 coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. swing — to play on
  3. scale — size or range
  4. object — to protest
  5. swing — music
  6. object — an aim
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. bulb — for light
  9. field — farmland
  10. land — ground
  11. object — a thing
  12. field — for sport
  13. land — a country
  14. wound — an injury
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. field — a subject
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. wound — an injury
  19. stem — to come from
  20. land — to come down
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. scale — in music
  24. bulb — for light

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