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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 120 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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Word bank
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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: ground · chip · rush · foot · spring · game · swing · craft

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  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. ground — crushed
  2. game — wild animals
  3. swing — music
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. chip — to eat
  6. ground — a position
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. spring — a coil
  10. spring — the season
  11. craft — boats
  12. chip — for betting
  13. rush — hurry
  14. foot — a measure
  15. spring — of water
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. game — a match
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. ground — the earth
  20. swing — to play on
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. craft — a skill
  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