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

Word bank: court · deal · club · pound · swing · lash

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. court — for sport
  3. swing — music
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. pound — a weight
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. club — for dancing
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. swing — in golf
  11. court — of law
  12. swing — to play on
  13. club — for golf
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. court — of a king
  16. club — a group
  17. deal — to handle
  18. deal — a big deal

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