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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. club — for dancing
  3. club — for golf
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. prune — to trim
  7. drill — a practice
  8. pitch — completely
  9. spring — the season
  10. spring — of water
  11. spring — a coil
  12. drill — the tool
  13. drill — army training
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. club — a group
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. prune — to trim
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. wake — a trail
  22. spell — a short time
  23. spell — magic
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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