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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: club · swing · bowl · clip · season · mouse · charge · bore

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. club — for golf
  3. clip — a video
  4. swing — music
  5. bore — to tire
  6. charge — electricity
  7. clip — to cut
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. swing — in golf
  12. club — for dancing
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. clip — for paper
  15. club — a group
  16. charge — in control
  17. bore — to drill
  18. swing — to play on
  19. season — of the year
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. charge — a price
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. season — in sport

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