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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'll be taking the ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. hand — in cards
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. tube — a container
  5. swing — in golf
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. pitch — completely
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. ball — a great time
  11. season — of the year
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. content — happy
  14. hand — help
  15. swing — music
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. ball — a dance
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. season — in sport
  21. swing — to play on
  22. branch — a division
  23. content — the amount
  24. tube — in a tire

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