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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  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. straw — a straw man
  3. spring — of water
  4. firm — decided
  5. club — for golf
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. wind — moving air
  10. club — for dancing
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. wind — moving air
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. firm — steady
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. spring — the season
  17. firm — a company
  18. foot — a measure
  19. spring — a coil
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. branch — a division
  23. foot — part of the body
  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