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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. shower — rain
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. swing — in golf
  7. pit — a hole
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. wake — a trail
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. hand — in cards
  14. swing — to play on
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. pit — in a race
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. shower — to wash
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. hand — help
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. bat — the animal
  24. dip — to sink

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