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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. staff — employees
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. staff — employees
  5. staff — a stick
  6. swing — to play on
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. cold — an illness
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. mate — a partner
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. cap — a lid
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. cold — not warm
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. cap — a hat
  18. mate — to breed
  19. mate — a friend
  20. wake — a trail
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. cap — of ice
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. swing — in golf

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