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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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Word bank
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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: safe · swing · spell · squash · cell · club · content · spring

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. content — the amount
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. spell — letters
  7. content — happy
  8. spring — of water
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. cell — in biology
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. spring — a coil
  13. spell — a short time
  14. spring — the season
  15. swing — to play on
  16. club — for golf
  17. club — for dancing
  18. swing — in golf
  19. squash — the sport
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. cell — a phone
  22. squash — to crush
  23. club — a group
  24. spell — magic

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