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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. rush — hurry
  3. swing — in golf
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. suit — in cards
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. content — the amount
  8. swing — music
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. capital — money
  11. hand — in cards
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. hand — help
  15. perch — the fish
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. content — happy
  19. swing — to play on
  20. capital — a city
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. suit — to fit
  23. suit — clothes
  24. content — videos and posts

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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