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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. swing — in golf
  3. bat — the animal
  4. branch — a division
  5. rush — hurry
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. land — ground
  8. wind — moving air
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. land — to come down
  11. wind — moving air
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. swing — to play on
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. foot — a measure
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. land — a country
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. fork — in a road

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