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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. deal — to handle
  3. spell — letters
  4. swing — to play on
  5. fork — in a road
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. spell — a short time
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. cold — an illness
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. vault — a safe
  19. plane — a tool
  20. swing — in golf
  21. cold — not warm
  22. spell — magic
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. deal — an agreement

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