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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
468
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: fork · spring · dip · ball · swing · chest · bat · march

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. chest — a box
  3. chest — of your body
  4. spring — of water
  5. ball — a great time
  6. swing — music
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. dip — to sink
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. chest — of your body
  12. swing — to play on
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. swing — in golf
  15. spring — the season
  16. fork — in a road
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. spring — a coil
  20. ball — a dance
  21. march — the month
  22. bat — the animal
  23. march — the month
  24. dip — to dunk

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