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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. lean — thin
  3. squash — the sport
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. track — a song
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. last — finally
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. foot — a measure
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. last — to go on
  15. track — to keep track
  16. swing — to play on
  17. wind — moving air
  18. squash — to crush
  19. swing — in golf
  20. swing — music
  21. track — a path
  22. last — final
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. lean — to bend

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