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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. mine — for digging
  4. sharp — clever
  5. spring — a coil
  6. cue — for pool
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. spring — the season
  9. spring — of water
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. cue — a hint
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. swing — in golf
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. chip — for betting
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. chip — to eat
  22. cue — a signal
  23. swing — to play on
  24. fan — a supporter

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