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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: bowl · content · swing · perch · straw · chair · bat · pass

  1. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. chair — a leader
  4. perch — the fish
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. content — the amount
  13. content — happy
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. pass — a permit
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. swing — to play on
  20. swing — music
  21. bat — the animal
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. bowl — a dish

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