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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. content — happy
  3. swing — music
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. chest — of your body
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. chest — of your body
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. chest — a box
  12. spring — of water
  13. spring — the season
  14. spring — a coil
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. swing — to play on
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. mark — a trace
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. content — the amount
  24. mark — a grade

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