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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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. pit — in a race
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. date — the fruit
  9. rash — a series
  10. bulb — for light
  11. rash — hasty
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. swing — to play on
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. stem — to come from
  16. swing — music
  17. mine — for digging
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. pit — a hole
  22. bulb — for light
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. stem — a stem cell

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