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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: kid · bass · race · bear · season · swing · roll · spring

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. swing — to play on
  3. bass — the fish
  4. race — humankind
  5. kid — to tease
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. roll — a list
  8. bear — the animal
  9. race — a contest
  10. kid — child
  11. race — the arms race
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. spring — the season
  14. season — in sport
  15. bass — low music
  16. season — of the year
  17. swing — in golf
  18. roll — a cake
  19. bear — the animal
  20. spring — a coil
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. spring — of water
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. bass — the instrument

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