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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. can — a tin
  4. swing — music
  5. ground — the earth
  6. spell — magic
  7. swing — in golf
  8. tear — from crying
  9. can — to be able to
  10. ground — crushed
  11. can — a tin
  12. spell — letters
  13. fine — all right
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. present — the time now
  16. present — there
  17. present — a gift
  18. tear — to rip
  19. swing — to play on
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. spell — a short time
  22. ground — a position
  23. tear — from crying
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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