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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: swing · bat · kid · suit · mate · pitch · rock · march

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. rock — a stone
  3. suit — in cards
  4. swing — music
  5. swing — in golf
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. swing — to play on
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. pitch — completely
  10. march — the month
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. mate — a partner
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. bat — the animal
  15. suit — clothes
  16. mate — to breed
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. kid — to tease
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. suit — to fit
  21. kid — child
  22. march — the month
  23. mate — a friend
  24. march — music

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