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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. swing — in golf
  4. rock — a stone
  5. swing — to play on
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. suit — clothes
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. bank — of a river
  10. wound — an injury
  11. swing — music
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. bark — to shout
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. wound — an injury
  17. bat — the animal
  18. suit — to fit
  19. suit — in cards
  20. squash — the sport
  21. bank — for money
  22. squash — to crush
  23. bank — for money
  24. bark — of a tree

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