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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. spell — a short time
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. season — of the year
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. spell — magic
  8. object — to protest
  9. ball — a dance
  10. object — a thing
  11. swing — to play on
  12. shower — rain
  13. shower — to wash
  14. object — an aim
  15. snap — to click
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. season — in sport
  20. swing — in golf
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. ball — a great time
  23. spell — letters
  24. ball — a round shape

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