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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. spell — magic
  3. swing — music
  4. march — the month
  5. spell — a short time
  6. march — the month
  7. club — for golf
  8. swing — to play on
  9. club — for dancing
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. bore — to tire
  12. march — music
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. club — a group
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. spell — letters
  18. perch — the fish
  19. tube — a container
  20. bore — to drill
  21. tube — the underground
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. perch — for a bird

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