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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. drill — a practice
  3. deal — to handle
  4. game — wild animals
  5. swing — to play on
  6. shower — rain
  7. fork — in a road
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. swing — in golf
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. drill — army training
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. rash — a series
  16. game — a match
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. shower — to wash
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. drill — the tool
  23. wake — a trail
  24. rash — hasty

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