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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. rush — hurry
  5. mate — to breed
  6. spring — a coil
  7. mine — for digging
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. mate — a partner
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. mate — a friend
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. cold — not warm
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. spring — of water
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. cold — an illness
  21. swing — to play on
  22. swing — music
  23. spring — the season
  24. mine — an explosive

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