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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: swing · cold · chip · club · squash · stand · lash · pop

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. stand — to bear
  3. swing — music
  4. pop — to visit
  5. cold — an illness
  6. chip — to eat
  7. squash — to crush
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. pop — soda
  10. chip — for betting
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. cold — not warm
  14. swing — to play on
  15. swing — in golf
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. squash — the sport
  21. club — for golf
  22. club — a group
  23. pop — music
  24. stand — on your feet

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