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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 116 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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  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. mate — a friend
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. swing — in golf
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. swing — music
  7. mate — to breed
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. mate — a partner
  12. capital — money
  13. row — to paddle
  14. swing — to play on
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. sharp — clever
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. pitch — completely
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. capital — a city
  21. dip — to sink
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. pitch — a sports field
  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