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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. chest — a box
  3. game — wild animals
  4. spell — letters
  5. can — a tin
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. club — for dancing
  8. bass — the fish
  9. spell — magic
  10. club — for golf
  11. game — a match
  12. chest — of your body
  13. cell — in biology
  14. cell — a phone
  15. root — of a plant
  16. can — a tin
  17. root — of a word
  18. bass — low music
  19. spell — a short time
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. club — a group
  22. can — to be able to
  23. root — the cause
  24. chest — of your body

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