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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 120 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: saw · bark · bat · swing · rule · root · scale · kid

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. root — of a plant
  4. swing — music
  5. rule — a law
  6. root — the cause
  7. swing — in golf
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. saw — the tool
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. scale — size or range
  13. bark — to shout
  14. rule — government
  15. root — of a word
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. saw — the tool
  18. bat — the animal
  19. kid — to tease
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. scale — in music
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. kid — child
  24. bat — in an idiom

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