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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: kid · swing · rest · fork · arm · present

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. swing — to play on
  3. rest — what's left
  4. present — a gift
  5. fork — in a road
  6. swing — music
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. kid — to tease
  10. kid — child
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. rest — what's left
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. present — there
  16. present — the time now
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. swing — in golf

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