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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. swing — music
  3. pop — to visit
  4. lean — to bend
  5. rash — hasty
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. pop — soda
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. swing — to play on
  11. net — for catching
  12. bat — the animal
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. swing — in golf
  15. mark — a trace
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. net — after costs
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. net — in sport
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. rash — a series
  22. mark — a grade
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. pop — music

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