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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: chair · arm · season · land · bowl · swing · mate · stock

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. swing — music
  3. stock — shares
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. land — to come down
  8. land — ground
  9. mate — a friend
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. chair — a leader
  12. mate — to breed
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. season — of the year
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. swing — in golf
  19. mate — a partner
  20. stock — goods
  21. land — a country
  22. season — in sport
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. swing — to play on

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