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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 116 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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. rule — a law
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. cold — an illness
  6. key — the most important part
  7. cell — a phone
  8. field — farmland
  9. mate — a partner
  10. pit — in a race
  11. cold — not warm
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. key — in music
  14. mate — to breed
  15. cell — in biology
  16. field — for sport
  17. mate — a friend
  18. key — for a lock
  19. swing — to play on
  20. field — a subject
  21. swing — music
  22. rule — government
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. pit — a hole

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