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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. swing — in golf
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. band — a ring
  5. stand — to bear
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. chip — for betting
  9. rock — music
  10. swing — music
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. spring — of water
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. kid — to tease
  15. spring — the season
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. chip — to eat
  19. spring — a coil
  20. band — a music group
  21. swing — to play on
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. kid — child
  24. rock — a stone

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