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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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. spring — the season
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. present — a gift
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. spring — a coil
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. lean — to bend
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. lie — to recline
  14. present — the time now
  15. lean — thin
  16. kid — child
  17. kid — to tease
  18. swing — to play on
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. present — there
  21. swing — music
  22. fork — in a road
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. spring — of water

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