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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. fine — high quality
  4. swing — to play on
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. scale — in music
  8. last — finally
  9. last — to go on
  10. cell — a phone
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. cell — in biology
  13. fine — all right
  14. board — to get on
  15. ball — a great time
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. last — final
  18. scale — size or range
  19. board — a committee
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. ball — a dance
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. swing — music

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