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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. sharp — clever
  3. hand — in cards
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wind — moving air
  6. branch — a division
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. net — in sport
  9. suit — in cards
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. hand — help
  12. suit — to fit
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. net — after costs
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. net — for catching
  21. suit — clothes
  22. club — for golf
  23. club — for dancing
  24. branch — of a tree

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