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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. mine — for digging
  3. bound — obliged
  4. club — a group
  5. spring — of water
  6. club — for golf
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. spring — the season
  9. bound — certain
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. spring — a coil
  13. bore — to tire
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. bore — to drill
  17. track — a path
  18. track — to keep track
  19. craft — a skill
  20. track — a song
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. craft — boats
  24. bound — tied together

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