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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 120 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: swing · key · cold · deal · saw · face · lash · club

  1. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. club — a group
  3. deal — to handle
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. cold — an illness
  6. club — for dancing
  7. key — for a lock
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. key — the most important part
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. face — to confront
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. saw — the tool
  14. face — part of the head
  15. saw — the tool
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. club — for golf
  18. swing — to play on
  19. swing — in golf
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. face — to point toward
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. cold — not warm
  24. swing — music

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