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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 kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. last — finally
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. capital — money
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. swing — to play on
  8. spring — a coil
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. ball — a great time
  11. capital — a city
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. rock — a stone
  14. cell — in biology
  15. rock — music
  16. spring — the season
  17. last — final
  18. last — to go on
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. swing — music
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. cell — a phone
  23. ball — a dance
  24. spring — of water

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