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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. saw — the tool
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. squash — to crush
  7. key — the most important part
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. bat — the animal
  10. club — a group
  11. saw — the tool
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. key — in music
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. club — for dancing
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. swing — music
  20. swing — to play on
  21. swing — in golf
  22. club — for golf
  23. key — for a lock
  24. squash — the vegetable

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