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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. mug — to rob
  3. toast — bread
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. shower — rain
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. chest — of your body
  10. chest — a box
  11. bass — low music
  12. club — a group
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. shower — to wash
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. chest — of your body
  18. club — for dancing
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. mug — a cup
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. bass — the fish
  23. mug — a face
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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