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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 120 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 King held a masked ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. wound — an injury
  3. swing — to play on
  4. swing — in golf
  5. stock — goods
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. swing — music
  8. stock — shares
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. ball — a great time
  11. bound — obliged
  12. season — in sport
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. wound — an injury
  16. capital — money
  17. capital — a city
  18. craft — a skill
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. craft — boats
  21. bound — certain
  22. season — of the year
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. bound — tied together

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