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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. club — for dancing
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. content — happy
  7. content — the amount
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. cold — an illness
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. ball — a dance
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. club — for golf
  17. branch — a division
  18. ball — a great time
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. cold — not warm

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