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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. squash — to crush
  3. march — the month
  4. suit — clothes
  5. swing — in golf
  6. mine — for digging
  7. wake — a trail
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. march — music
  11. cap — a lid
  12. content — happy
  13. suit — in cards
  14. cap — a hat
  15. march — the month
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. swing — music
  18. cap — of ice
  19. suit — to fit
  20. squash — the sport
  21. content — the amount
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. swing — to play on
  24. mine — an explosive

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