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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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. field — a subject
  5. hand — help
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. swing — music
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. deal — to handle
  12. pound — a weight
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. field — farmland
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. field — for sport
  17. wax — to grow
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. swing — to play on
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. cell — a phone
  22. plane — a tool
  23. cell — in biology
  24. hand — in cards

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