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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. bat — the animal
  3. swing — to play on
  4. field — farmland
  5. swing — in golf
  6. swing — music
  7. field — a subject
  8. bulb — for light
  9. rock — a stone
  10. game — wild animals
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. rock — music
  13. field — for sport
  14. can — to be able to
  15. bulb — for light
  16. can — a tin
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. can — a tin
  24. lash — an eyelash

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