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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: racket · swing · mate · land · plane · chest · bay · hand

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. chest — of your body
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. plane — a tool
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. swing — to play on
  8. land — to come down
  9. land — ground
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. hand — in cards
  13. mate — a friend
  14. swing — music
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. hand — help
  17. land — a country
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. swing — in golf
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. chest — a box
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. mate — to breed
  24. chest — of your body

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