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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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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: stick · row · club · tube · swing · sharp · wind · leaves

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. swing — music
  3. wind — moving air
  4. club — for dancing
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. club — for golf
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. swing — in golf
  9. club — a group
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. swing — to play on
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. row — a line
  17. tube — the underground
  18. tube — a container
  19. row — to paddle
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. sharp — clever
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. wind — moving air

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