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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 had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  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. drill — a practice
  2. swing — in golf
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. squash — to crush
  5. suit — in cards
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. swing — to play on
  8. bat — the animal
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. staff — employees
  11. lean — thin
  12. staff — a stick
  13. suit — clothes
  14. drill — the tool
  15. capital — money
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. drill — army training
  18. lean — to bend
  19. staff — employees
  20. suit — to fit
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. capital — a city
  23. squash — the sport
  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