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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. club — for golf
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. pit — a hole
  6. spring — the season
  7. spring — a coil
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. pit — in a race
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. club — a group
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. bark — to shout
  14. swing — to play on
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. swing — in golf
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. spring — of water
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. club — for dancing
  21. snap — to click
  22. season — in sport
  23. swing — music
  24. season — of the year

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