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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. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. bore — to drill
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. net — for catching
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. club — for golf
  9. net — in sport
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. cold — not warm
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. club — a group
  14. cold — an illness
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. bore — to tire
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. net — after costs
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. deal — to handle
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. fan — a supporter

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