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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. swing — to play on
  3. swing — in golf
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. cold — not warm
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. cold — an illness
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. season — of the year
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. bark — to shout
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. club — for dancing
  17. swing — music
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. season — in sport
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. foot — a measure
  23. club — a group
  24. club — for golf

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