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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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. craft — boats
  3. craft — a skill
  4. prune — to trim
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. band — a ring
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. spell — letters
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. roll — a list
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. wind — moving air
  14. spell — a short time
  15. swing — to play on
  16. swing — music
  17. spell — magic
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. roll — a cake
  20. prune — to trim
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. wind — moving air
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. band — a music group

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