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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. firm — steady
  3. swing — to play on
  4. firm — decided
  5. row — a line
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. row — to paddle
  11. swing — music
  12. bear — the animal
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. chair — a leader
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. firm — a company
  17. kid — to tease
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. bear — the animal
  22. date — the fruit
  23. plane — a tool
  24. kid — child

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