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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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. swing — music
  3. spring — of water
  4. net — in sport
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. swing — to play on
  7. wind — moving air
  8. spring — a coil
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. spring — the season
  12. season — in sport
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. net — for catching
  15. net — after costs
  16. season — of the year
  17. dip — to sink
  18. wind — moving air

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