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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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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: swing · game · race · club · bound · stem · foot · pop

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. pop — music
  3. bound — certain
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. game — a match
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. pop — soda
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. swing — in golf
  10. club — for dancing
  11. bound — obliged
  12. swing — music
  13. pop — to visit
  14. bound — tied together
  15. race — humankind
  16. race — a contest
  17. club — for golf
  18. club — a group
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. race — the arms race
  22. stem — to come from
  23. foot — a measure
  24. swing — to play on

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