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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. present — there
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. capital — money
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. swing — to play on
  10. present — a gift
  11. row — a line
  12. swing — music
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. row — to paddle
  15. capital — a city
  16. swing — in golf
  17. bear — the animal
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. bear — the animal
  20. game — a match
  21. kid — child
  22. kid — to tease
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. game — wild animals

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