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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 116 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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. dip — to sink
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. swing — in golf
  9. ball — a dance
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. field — a subject
  12. swing — music
  13. field — farmland
  14. ball — a great time
  15. field — for sport
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. ball — a round shape

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