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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. club — a group
  3. swing — in golf
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. fall — to drop
  6. clip — to cut
  7. fall — the season
  8. swing — to play on
  9. craft — a skill
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. pound — a weight
  13. clip — for paper
  14. fall — to drop
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. bear — the animal
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. bear — the animal
  19. craft — boats
  20. clip — a video
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. club — for dancing
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. club — for golf

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