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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. spring — a coil
  5. spring — the season
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. prune — to trim
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. spring — of water
  11. stock — shares
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. prune — to trim
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. stock — goods
  17. club — for golf
  18. club — a group

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