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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. kid — to tease
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. hand — help
  5. net — after costs
  6. wake — a trail
  7. net — in sport
  8. rule — government
  9. hand — in cards
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. swing — music
  12. net — for catching
  13. rule — a law
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. kid — child
  19. squash — to crush
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. squash — the sport
  22. rush — hurry
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. swing — in golf

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