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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. last — final
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. pop — to visit
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. last — finally
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. scale — size or range
  10. face — to confront
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. pop — music
  13. board — a committee
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. swing — to play on
  16. rush — hurry
  17. face — part of the head
  18. board — to get on
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. face — to point toward
  21. last — to go on
  22. pop — soda
  23. swing — in golf
  24. scale — in 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