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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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. court — of a king
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. swing — to play on
  5. squash — the sport
  6. tear — from crying
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. wound — an injury
  9. court — of law
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. tear — from crying
  12. wound — an injury
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. court — for sport
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. squash — to crush
  17. mine — for digging
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. vault — a safe
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. swing — music
  23. tear — to rip
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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