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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: ball · stock · content · swing · rash · chest · bowl · spring

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. spring — a coil
  4. rash — hasty
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. chest — a box
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. content — the amount
  9. chest — of your body
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. swing — to play on
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. swing — in golf
  15. chest — of your body
  16. spring — of water
  17. content — happy
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. ball — a dance
  20. swing — music
  21. stock — shares
  22. stock — goods
  23. ball — a great time
  24. rash — a series

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