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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. last — final
  3. squash — the sport
  4. last — to go on
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. hand — help
  7. swing — in golf
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. squash — to crush
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. shower — rain
  16. shower — to wash
  17. lean — to bend
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. hand — in cards
  20. last — finally
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. swing — to play on
  23. lean — thin
  24. date — the fruit

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