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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. present — there
  3. swing — in golf
  4. chest — of your body
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. present — a gift
  8. march — the month
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. net — in sport
  11. net — after costs
  12. swing — music
  13. net — for catching
  14. staff — employees
  15. march — music
  16. chest — a box
  17. present — the time now
  18. swing — to play on
  19. staff — employees
  20. staff — a stick
  21. march — the month
  22. hand — in cards
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. chest — of your body

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