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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  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. nail — on a finger
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. roll — a list
  4. land — ground
  5. roll — a cake
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. land — a country
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. swing — to play on
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. season — in sport
  15. capital — money
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. capital — a city
  19. swing — in golf
  20. land — to come down
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. season — of the year
  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