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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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. stock — shares
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. swing — to play on
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. game — wild animals
  7. date — the fruit
  8. file — a tool
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. current — happening now
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. bulb — for light
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. stock — goods
  17. current — electric
  18. file — a line of people
  19. current — of water
  20. bulb — for light
  21. game — a match
  22. file — a document
  23. swing — music
  24. date — on the calendar

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