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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: march · rock · current · swing · tear · mine · chair · deal

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. deal — to handle
  3. march — music
  4. chair — a leader
  5. swing — in golf
  6. tear — from crying
  7. tear — to rip
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. march — the month
  12. swing — music
  13. swing — to play on
  14. current — happening now
  15. tear — from crying
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. mine — for digging
  18. rock — a stone
  19. current — electric
  20. current — of water
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. march — the month
  24. rock — music

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