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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: cabinet · season · swing · wind · club · nail · plane · content

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. club — for golf
  3. content — happy
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. club — for dancing
  6. club — a group
  7. season — of the year
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. swing — in golf
  12. plane — a tool
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wind — moving air
  15. content — the amount
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. swing — to play on
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. season — in sport
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. swing — music
  24. content — videos and posts

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