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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 116 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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. rule — government
  3. swing — in golf
  4. spring — a coil
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. march — the month
  7. swing — to play on
  8. spring — the season
  9. rule — a law
  10. mine — for digging
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. march — music
  14. club — for golf
  15. bass — low music
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. club — for dancing
  19. spring — of water
  20. swing — music
  21. club — a group
  22. bass — the fish
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. dip — to sink

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