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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 120 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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. mine — for digging
  3. file — a tool
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. lean — to bend
  6. ball — a dance
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. cap — a lid
  9. club — for golf
  10. pitch — completely
  11. club — a group
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. cap — of ice
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. ball — a great time
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. file — a line of people
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. lean — thin
  22. file — a document
  23. cap — a hat
  24. mine — belonging to me

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