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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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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: bat · wake · arm · current · pound · sharp · face · swing

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. swing — in golf
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. sharp — clever
  5. wake — a trail
  6. current — of water
  7. current — happening now
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. face — to confront
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. bat — the animal
  13. swing — to play on
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. face — part of the head
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. pound — a weight
  21. face — to point toward
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. swing — music
  24. current — electric

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