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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 120 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: race · pit · swing · suit · hand · bass · saw · cold

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. pit — in a race
  3. swing — music
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. cold — an illness
  6. race — a contest
  7. saw — the tool
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. suit — to fit
  10. race — the arms race
  11. suit — in cards
  12. suit — clothes
  13. bass — the fish
  14. saw — the tool
  15. swing — to play on
  16. cold — not warm
  17. swing — in golf
  18. race — humankind
  19. pit — a hole
  20. bass — low music
  21. hand — help
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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