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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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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: swing · cold · pitcher · rash · band · ruler · bulb · bowl

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. bulb — for light
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. cold — not warm
  6. rash — hasty
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. band — a music group
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. swing — in golf
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. rash — a series
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. band — a ring
  19. bulb — for light
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. swing — music
  23. bowl — a dish
  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