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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 116 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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. net — after costs
  4. spring — the season
  5. net — in sport
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. track — a song
  8. track — to keep track
  9. swing — to play on
  10. row — to paddle
  11. club — a group
  12. spring — a coil
  13. shower — rain
  14. spring — of water
  15. net — for catching
  16. swing — in golf
  17. rock — a stone
  18. swing — music
  19. rock — music
  20. shower — to wash
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. club — for dancing
  23. row — a line
  24. track — a path

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