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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: swing · craft · chair · squash · club · march · mine · straw

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. club — for golf
  5. march — the month
  6. squash — the sport
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. squash — to crush
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. club — a group
  11. march — music
  12. swing — to play on
  13. craft — a skill
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. craft — boats
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. club — for dancing
  18. swing — in golf
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. mine — for digging
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. march — the month
  24. chair — a leader

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