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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. swing — in golf
  4. squash — to crush
  5. scale — in music
  6. swing — to play on
  7. wound — an injury
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. scale — size or range
  10. spell — a short time
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. squash — the sport
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. rash — hasty
  21. spell — letters
  22. rash — a series
  23. spell — magic
  24. swing — music

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