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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. face — to point toward
  3. ground — the earth
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. hand — help
  6. club — a group
  7. ground — a position
  8. dip — to sink
  9. hand — in cards
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. shower — to wash
  12. row — a line
  13. current — electric
  14. face — part of the head
  15. shower — rain
  16. ground — crushed
  17. row — to paddle
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. current — of water
  21. face — to confront
  22. current — happening now
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. club — for dancing

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