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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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. kid — to tease
  3. root — of a word
  4. kid — child
  5. content — happy
  6. root — the cause
  7. swing — music
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. content — the amount
  10. wake — a trail
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. fine — all right
  16. ball — a great time
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. fine — high quality
  19. swing — to play on
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. bat — the animal
  22. ball — a dance
  23. root — of a plant
  24. fine — a penalty

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