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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. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. swing — music
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. bass — the fish
  5. swing — in golf
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. spell — a short time
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. spell — letters
  12. capital — a city
  13. roll — a cake
  14. capital — money
  15. scale — size or range
  16. roll — a list
  17. swing — to play on
  18. foot — a measure
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. wound — an injury
  21. scale — in music
  22. spell — magic
  23. bass — low music
  24. scale — for weighing

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