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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 coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. ground — a position
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. game — a match
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. hand — in cards
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. ground — crushed
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. ground — the earth
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. hand — help
  18. swing — to play on
  19. roll — a list
  20. roll — a cake
  21. branch — a division
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. game — wild animals
  24. swing — music

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