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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 like to play a game of ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. fall — to drop
  3. content — the amount
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. fall — to drop
  6. present — a gift
  7. swing — in golf
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. saw — the tool
  10. fall — the season
  11. content — happy
  12. present — the time now
  13. saw — the tool
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. net — in sport
  16. squash — to crush
  17. net — for catching
  18. present — there
  19. swing — to play on
  20. net — after costs
  21. swing — music
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. arm — part of the body

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