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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. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to spend time
  2. squash — the sport
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. swing — in golf
  5. spell — letters
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. cell — in biology
  8. march — the month
  9. spell — magic
  10. march — the month
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. squash — to crush
  13. court — of a king
  14. pass — a permit
  15. swing — music
  16. cell — a phone
  17. court — for sport
  18. march — music
  19. spell — a short time
  20. swing — to play on
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. court — of law
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. straw — dry grass

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