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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 120 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 hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. fine — all right
  4. game — a match
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. bass — low music
  7. spring — a coil
  8. swing — to play on
  9. game — wild animals
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. swing — music
  13. fine — high quality
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. bass — the fish
  16. bound — certain
  17. bound — obliged
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. bound — tied together
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. swing — in golf
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. spring — the season

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