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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: club · stand · squash · nail · degree · kid · rock · swing

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. swing — music
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. kid — to tease
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. swing — in golf
  8. rock — music
  9. stand — to bear
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. squash — the sport
  12. degree — an amount
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. degree — from a university
  15. squash — to crush
  16. club — for dancing
  17. swing — to play on
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. rock — a stone
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. kid — child
  22. club — a group
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. degree — temperature

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