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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 124 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 spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. pop — to visit
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. bat — the animal
  8. capital — money
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. cell — a phone
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. pop — soda
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. pop — music
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. swing — music
  17. bore — to tire
  18. cell — in biology
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. bore — to drill
  21. capital — a city
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. swing — to play on
  24. capital — a big letter

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