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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. kid — to tease
  4. spell — letters
  5. ball — a great time
  6. chair — a leader
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. spell — a short time
  9. spell — magic
  10. club — a group
  11. kid — child
  12. bore — to tire
  13. club — for dancing
  14. club — for golf
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. roll — a list
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. bore — to drill
  22. roll — a cake
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. chair — to sit on

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