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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. spell — a short time
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. bass — the fish
  5. spell — magic
  6. swing — to play on
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. bass — low music
  9. march — the month
  10. lean — to bend
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. swing — music
  16. spell — letters
  17. march — the month
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. lean — thin
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. cold — not warm
  22. vault — a safe
  23. cold — an illness
  24. march — 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