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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. saw — the tool
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. wind — moving air
  5. rush — hurry
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. swing — to play on
  8. drill — the tool
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. drill — army training
  14. hand — help
  15. bound — obliged
  16. bound — certain
  17. hand — in cards
  18. saw — the tool
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. drill — a practice
  21. swing — music
  22. bound — tied together
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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