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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: cap · club · swing · saw · perch · pop · straw · pound

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. pop — music
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. pop — to visit
  7. club — for golf
  8. swing — music
  9. saw — the tool
  10. perch — the fish
  11. club — for dancing
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. cap — a lid
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. cap — a hat
  17. pop — soda
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. pound — a weight
  20. club — a group
  21. cap — of ice
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. swing — in golf
  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