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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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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. spring — of water
  3. bass — the fish
  4. spring — a coil
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. swing — music
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. bass — low music
  9. rule — government
  10. rule — a law
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. spring — the season
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. swing — in golf
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. trunk — of a tree

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