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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: swing · lash · ground · perch · jam · row · bat · hand

  1. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. row — to paddle
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. ground — crushed
  8. bat — the animal
  9. swing — to play on
  10. ground — a position
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. perch — the fish
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. ground — the earth
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. swing — music
  19. row — a line
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. hand — in cards
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. hand — help
  24. swing — in golf

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