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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. season — of the year
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. season — in sport
  6. swing — in golf
  7. ball — a dance
  8. bass — the fish
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. mark — a trace
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. bass — low music
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. swing — to play on
  16. stand — to bear
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. cold — not warm
  19. cold — an illness
  20. mark — a grade
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. ball — a great time
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. swing — music

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