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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. spring — the season
  3. squash — the sport
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. spring — a coil
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. swing — music
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. lean — thin
  10. spring — of water
  11. bore — to tire
  12. chest — a box
  13. squash — to crush
  14. pop — to visit
  15. net — after costs
  16. net — for catching
  17. swing — to play on
  18. chest — of your body
  19. net — in sport
  20. chest — of your body
  21. swing — in golf
  22. bore — to drill
  23. lean — to bend
  24. pop — soda

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