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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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. cap — a lid
  3. ground — a position
  4. prune — to trim
  5. prune — to trim
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. cap — a hat
  8. bore — to drill
  9. ground — crushed
  10. chair — a leader
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. swing — music
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. bore — to tire
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. swing — to play on
  19. ground — the earth
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. cap — of ice
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. trunk — of a tree

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