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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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. rule — a law
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. swing — to play on
  6. capital — money
  7. swing — music
  8. stem — to come from
  9. club — a group
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. club — for dancing
  12. bat — the animal
  13. capital — a city
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. club — for golf
  18. rule — government

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