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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 120 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. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. content — happy
  3. stem — to come from
  4. swing — to play on
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. swing — in golf
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. rash — hasty
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. last — final
  13. pound — a weight
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. rash — a series
  18. swing — music
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. pit — a hole
  21. last — to go on
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. content — the amount
  24. last — finally

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