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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. swing — music
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. present — the time now
  5. last — finally
  6. pit — in a race
  7. swing — in golf
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. prune — to trim
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. present — a gift
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. game — wild animals
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. swing — to play on
  17. prune — to trim
  18. game — a match
  19. pitch — completely
  20. present — there
  21. row — to paddle
  22. pit — a hole
  23. last — final
  24. row — a line

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