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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: plane · season · stock · wind · swing · kick · key · bat

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. key — in music
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. season — in sport
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. key — the most important part
  8. key — for a lock
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. stock — shares
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. swing — to play on
  14. swing — music
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. stock — goods
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. swing — in golf
  20. plane — a tool
  21. bat — the animal
  22. season — of the year
  23. kick — in football
  24. season — to add flavour

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