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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: mark · cold · lash · swing · straw · chip · band · club

  1. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. club — for dancing
  5. cold — an illness
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. club — a group
  9. swing — to play on
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. cold — not warm
  12. chip — to eat
  13. chip — for betting
  14. swing — in golf
  15. swing — music
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. band — a ring
  20. band — a music group
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. mark — a grade
  23. club — for golf
  24. mark — to pay attention

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