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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 kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. swing — in golf
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. file — a tool
  5. spring — the season
  6. swing — music
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. ball — a dance
  9. ball — a great time
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. swing — to play on
  12. file — a document
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. spring — a coil
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. sharp — clever
  18. file — a line of people
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. spring — of water
  24. wake — a trail

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