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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 116 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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. shower — to wash
  4. swing — to play on
  5. wound — an injury
  6. shower — rain
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. net — after costs
  12. board — to get on
  13. fall — to drop
  14. wound — an injury
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. fall — to drop
  18. net — for catching
  19. net — in sport
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. fall — the season
  23. board — a committee
  24. swing — in golf

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