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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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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: board · spell · club · swing · pitch · cabinet · hand · rest

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. hand — help
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. rest — what's left
  6. club — a group
  7. pitch — completely
  8. board — a committee
  9. hand — in cards
  10. club — for golf
  11. swing — music
  12. board — to get on
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. swing — to play on
  15. swing — in golf
  16. club — for dancing
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. spell — a short time
  19. rest — what's left
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. spell — magic
  22. rest — a break
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. board — a flat piece

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