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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: swing · bear · bat · cell · stock · foot · drill · court

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. stock — shares
  4. bear — the animal
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. court — of law
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. court — of a king
  9. drill — the tool
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. bat — the animal
  12. court — for sport
  13. bear — the animal
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. swing — to play on
  16. cell — a phone
  17. foot — a measure
  18. cell — in biology
  19. swing — music
  20. stock — goods
  21. swing — in golf
  22. drill — a practice
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. cell — in a prison

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