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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. band — a music group
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. board — to get on
  5. land — ground
  6. land — to come down
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. squash — to crush
  9. swing — to play on
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. mine — for digging
  12. land — a country
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. kid — child
  15. object — an aim
  16. swing — music
  17. kid — to tease
  18. band — a ring
  19. object — to protest
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. squash — the sport
  23. object — a thing
  24. board — a committee

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