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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.

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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. rash — a series
  3. swing — in golf
  4. bat — the animal
  5. suit — clothes
  6. swing — music
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. file — a line of people
  9. club — for dancing
  10. file — a tool
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. suit — in cards
  13. suit — to fit
  14. rash — hasty
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. shower — to wash
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. club — for golf
  21. swing — to play on
  22. shower — rain
  23. wax — to grow
  24. file — a document

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