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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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. swing — in golf
  3. craft — boats
  4. saw — the tool
  5. track — to keep track
  6. swing — to play on
  7. deal — to handle
  8. hand — help
  9. hand — in cards
  10. saw — the tool
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. drill — the tool
  13. drill — army training
  14. clip — a video
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. drill — a practice
  17. clip — for paper
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. clip — to cut
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. track — a song
  23. track — a path
  24. craft — a skill

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