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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. firm — decided
  4. swing — in golf
  5. club — for golf
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. prune — to trim
  9. swing — music
  10. last — final
  11. degree — temperature
  12. last — to go on
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. prune — to trim
  15. firm — a company
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. swing — to play on
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. club — for dancing
  20. last — finally
  21. degree — an amount
  22. firm — steady
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. degree — from a university

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