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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. staff — a stick
  3. rock — music
  4. root — the cause
  5. club — for dancing
  6. kid — to tease
  7. rock — a stone
  8. root — of a word
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. staff — employees
  11. current — of water
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. club — for golf
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — moving air
  18. kid — child
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. root — of a plant
  21. staff — employees
  22. current — happening now
  23. plane — a tool
  24. current — electric

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