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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. tear — to rip
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. cap — a hat
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. club — for dancing
  9. squash — to crush
  10. craft — boats
  11. clip — for paper
  12. clip — to cut
  13. cap — of ice
  14. squash — the sport
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. tear — from crying
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. tear — from crying
  20. craft — a skill
  21. clip — a video
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. cap — a lid
  24. club — a group

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