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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: scale · content · bore · wake · date · wind · pit · swing

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. scale — size or range
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. wind — moving air
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. scale — in music
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. content — happy
  11. content — the amount
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. pit — a hole
  14. bore — to drill
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. bore — to tire
  17. swing — in golf
  18. date — the fruit
  19. wind — moving air
  20. swing — to play on
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. wake — a trail
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. pit — in a race

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