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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: club · face · rule · snap · swing · spring · foot · race

  1. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. race — the arms race
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. face — to confront
  5. spring — a coil
  6. club — for dancing
  7. swing — in golf
  8. face — part of the head
  9. club — for golf
  10. spring — the season
  11. snap — to click
  12. rule — a law
  13. foot — a measure
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. race — a contest
  16. face — to point toward
  17. rule — government
  18. swing — to play on
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. race — humankind
  21. spring — of water
  22. swing — music
  23. club — a group
  24. rule — to rule out

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