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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: rock · row · bowl · pitch · nail · swing · racket · last

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. last — final
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. swing — music
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. rock — music
  10. swing — to play on
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. pitch — completely
  13. last — to go on
  14. last — finally
  15. rock — a stone
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. row — a line
  20. row — to paddle
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. swing — in golf
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. bowl — a football final

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