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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
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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: rock · swing · hand · scale · land · track · mine · season

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. scale — size or range
  4. rock — a stone
  5. land — ground
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. land — a country
  9. track — a song
  10. mine — for digging
  11. rock — music
  12. swing — music
  13. hand — in cards
  14. swing — to play on
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. track — a path
  17. land — to come down
  18. scale — in music
  19. season — of the year
  20. hand — help
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. season — in sport
  23. track — to keep track
  24. swing — in golf

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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