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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. foot — a measure
  3. club — for dancing
  4. bore — to drill
  5. snap — to click
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. bore — to tire
  10. band — a ring
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. game — a match
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. band — a music group
  15. club — for golf
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. game — wild animals

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