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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. spring — a coil
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. squash — to crush
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. spell — a short time
  7. club — a group
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. mug — a face
  10. mug — to rob
  11. staff — employees
  12. degree — an amount
  13. degree — from a university
  14. spell — magic
  15. spring — of water
  16. club — for golf
  17. staff — a stick
  18. wake — a trail
  19. squash — the sport
  20. degree — temperature
  21. staff — employees
  22. spring — the season
  23. spell — letters
  24. mug — a cup

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