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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. rash — a series
  3. swing — to play on
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. branch — a division
  6. swing — in golf
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. rest — what's left
  9. firm — a company
  10. spring — a coil
  11. swing — music
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. firm — steady
  14. court — of a king
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. firm — decided
  17. rest — what's left
  18. rash — hasty
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. court — for sport
  21. spring — of water
  22. court — of law
  23. spring — the season
  24. rest — a break

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