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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: patient · club · foot · jam · pit · degree · press · swing

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. degree — an amount
  4. swing — to play on
  5. swing — in golf
  6. club — a group
  7. press — to push
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. pit — a hole
  11. degree — from a university
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. degree — temperature
  14. pit — in a race
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. club — for golf
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. swing — music
  20. press — a publisher
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. press — newspapers
  23. foot — a measure
  24. foot — the bottom

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