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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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. file — a document
  3. mug — a cup
  4. file — a line of people
  5. tear — from crying
  6. cap — a hat
  7. mug — a face
  8. ground — a position
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. tear — from crying
  11. ground — crushed
  12. club — for golf
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. cap — of ice
  15. capital — a city
  16. tear — to rip
  17. capital — money
  18. club — for dancing
  19. file — a tool
  20. season — in sport
  21. mug — to rob
  22. season — of the year
  23. cap — a lid
  24. ground — the earth

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