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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 120 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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. pound — a weight
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. chest — of your body
  6. swing — music
  7. degree — from a university
  8. rest — a break
  9. squash — the sport
  10. degree — an amount
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. squash — to crush
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. chest — of your body
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. rest — what's left
  18. degree — temperature
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. chest — a box
  21. sharp — clever
  22. rest — what's left
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. swing — to play on

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