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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. land — a country
  3. court — of law
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. court — for sport
  7. mug — to rob
  8. land — to come down
  9. band — a music group
  10. race — a contest
  11. race — the arms race
  12. club — for dancing
  13. race — humankind
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. club — a group
  16. court — of a king
  17. mug — a cup
  18. stock — shares
  19. stock — goods
  20. band — a ring
  21. mug — a face
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. land — ground
  24. stock — a soup base

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