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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: wind · jam · last · saw · swing · date · scale · ball

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. last — final
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. last — finally
  7. scale — size or range
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. wind — moving air
  11. last — to go on
  12. scale — in music
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. swing — music
  16. ball — a great time
  17. saw — the tool
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. ball — a dance
  20. jam — in traffic
  21. swing — to play on
  22. saw — the tool
  23. swing — in golf
  24. date — the fruit

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