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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 116 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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. club — a group
  4. clip — to cut
  5. current — happening now
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. fine — high quality
  10. rash — a series
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. shower — rain
  13. current — of water
  14. fine — all right
  15. branch — a division
  16. clip — for paper
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. clip — a video
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. current — electric
  22. club — for golf
  23. shower — to wash
  24. rash — hasty

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