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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 116 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: press · swing · fall · last · club · kick · row · lie

  1. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. club — for golf
  3. club — a group
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. last — final
  7. row — to paddle
  8. swing — in golf
  9. club — for dancing
  10. fall — to drop
  11. row — a line
  12. press — newspapers
  13. last — finally
  14. press — a publisher
  15. kick — in football
  16. lie — to recline
  17. fall — to drop
  18. swing — to play on
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. last — to go on
  21. fall — the season
  22. press — to push
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. swing — music

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