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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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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: season · lie · bear · rule · swing · bass · bat · ball

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. rule — government
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. bear — the animal
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. lie — to recline
  8. swing — to play on
  9. ball — a great time
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. bear — the animal
  12. ball — a dance
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. rule — a law
  15. swing — music
  16. season — in sport
  17. season — of the year
  18. swing — in golf
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. bat — the animal
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. bass — low music
  23. bass — the fish
  24. lie — an untruth

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