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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. kid — child
  3. board — a committee
  4. file — a line of people
  5. file — a tool
  6. fine — high quality
  7. pop — soda
  8. pop — music
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. file — a document
  11. swing — in golf
  12. swing — music
  13. swing — to play on
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. pop — to visit
  17. board — to get on
  18. kid — to tease

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