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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. race — humankind
  3. spell — magic
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. swing — music
  6. court — of law
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. spell — letters
  10. ground — crushed
  11. race — a contest
  12. ground — a position
  13. court — of a king
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. swing — in golf
  16. spell — a short time
  17. race — the arms race
  18. ground — the earth
  19. snap — to click
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. court — for sport
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. patient — a sick person

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