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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: racket · club · cap · bore · kick · spring · tube · swing

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. club — for golf
  3. cap — a hat
  4. club — a group
  5. tube — a container
  6. spring — of water
  7. kick — in football
  8. cap — a lid
  9. tube — the underground
  10. cap — of ice
  11. spring — a coil
  12. bore — to drill
  13. club — for dancing
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. swing — music
  16. swing — to play on
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. bore — to tire
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. swing — in golf

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