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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. swing — music
  3. swing — in golf
  4. can — to be able to
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. mate — a partner
  8. hand — in cards
  9. last — final
  10. mate — to breed
  11. can — a tin
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. mate — a friend
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. stock — goods
  16. last — finally
  17. stock — shares
  18. last — to go on
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. can — a tin
  21. cell — a phone
  22. cell — in biology
  23. hand — help
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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