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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 116 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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. cap — a hat
  4. swing — in golf
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. file — a document
  7. bound — certain
  8. swing — music
  9. tear — from crying
  10. bound — tied together
  11. cap — a lid
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. tear — to rip
  16. cap — of ice
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. bound — obliged
  22. tear — from crying
  23. file — a line of people
  24. file — a tool

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