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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: swing · cell · cabinet · rock · kid · ground · bay · wake

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. kid — to tease
  4. swing — in golf
  5. rock — music
  6. ground — a position
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. kid — child
  10. ground — the earth
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. cell — in biology
  13. swing — music
  14. wake — a trail
  15. cell — a phone
  16. rock — a stone
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. ground — crushed
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  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