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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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. swing — music
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. ground — a position
  5. cue — a hint
  6. ground — crushed
  7. scale — size or range
  8. swing — in golf
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. ground — the earth
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. scale — in music
  14. bat — the animal
  15. swing — to play on
  16. land — to come down
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. cue — for pool
  19. cue — a signal
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. land — ground
  23. land — a country
  24. lash — to lash out

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