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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. swing — in golf
  3. wind — moving air
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. swing — music
  6. sharp — clever
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. deal — to handle
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. band — a music group
  14. clip — to cut
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. band — a ring
  17. clip — a video
  18. clip — for paper
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. shower — to wash
  21. shower — rain
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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