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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: club · trunk · perch · swing · deal · wind

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. club — a group
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. swing — in golf
  9. perch — the fish
  10. swing — music
  11. deal — to handle
  12. club — for golf
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. club — for dancing
  16. swing — to play on
  17. wind — moving air
  18. deal — an agreement

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