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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. spell — letters
  3. swing — to play on
  4. game — a match
  5. game — wild animals
  6. can — a tin
  7. scale — in music
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. can — a tin
  11. spell — a short time
  12. chip — for betting
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. spell — magic
  15. can — to be able to
  16. chip — to eat
  17. bass — low music
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. swing — music
  20. bass — the fish
  21. roll — a list
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. swing — in golf
  24. scale — size or range

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