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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: mark · kid · wind · hand · craft · swing · club · foot

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. hand — help
  4. kid — child
  5. swing — in golf
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. hand — in cards
  8. club — a group
  9. wind — moving air
  10. kid — to tease
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. swing — music
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. swing — to play on
  18. mark — a trace
  19. craft — boats
  20. craft — a skill
  21. mark — a grade
  22. foot — a measure
  23. club — for golf
  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