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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 116 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: straw · swing · game · club · mark · pound

  1. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  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. mark — a grade
  2. pound — a weight
  3. club — a group
  4. swing — to play on
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. game — a match
  7. mark — a trace
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. swing — music
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. game — wild animals
  14. club — for dancing
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. club — for golf
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  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