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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: wake · season · face · fall · drill · kid · stick · swing

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. season — of the year
  3. drill — army training
  4. swing — music
  5. fall — to drop
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. drill — a practice
  8. season — in sport
  9. wake — a trail
  10. swing — to play on
  11. swing — in golf
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. drill — the tool
  16. face — to point toward
  17. kid — to tease
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. fall — to drop
  20. face — part of the head
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. face — to confront
  23. fall — the season
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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