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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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. club — for golf
  3. club — for dancing
  4. hand — in cards
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. branch — a division
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. hand — help
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. club — a group
  15. roll — a list
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. swing — to play on
  19. roll — a cake
  20. swing — music
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. swing — in golf
  23. mine — for digging
  24. rash — hasty

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