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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. spell — letters
  3. club — for dancing
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. bat — the animal
  6. spell — a short time
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. tear — from crying
  9. kick — in football
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. bass — low music
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. tear — from crying
  16. spell — magic
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. tear — to rip
  21. club — for golf
  22. bass — the fish
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. trunk — of a car

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