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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 116 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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. present — a gift
  3. club — a group
  4. ball — a great time
  5. present — the time now
  6. land — a country
  7. hand — in cards
  8. club — for golf
  9. club — for dancing
  10. hand — help
  11. present — there
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. land — ground
  14. ball — a dance
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wind — moving air
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. land — to come down
  21. bass — the fish
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. game — a match
  24. bass — low music

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