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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. lean — thin
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. squash — to crush
  6. swing — to play on
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. lean — to bend
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. bass — low music
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. ball — a dance
  14. kid — child
  15. swing — music
  16. chair — a leader
  17. swing — in golf
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. mine — for digging
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. squash — the sport
  22. kid — to tease
  23. ball — a great time
  24. bass — the fish

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