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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. club — for golf
  3. shower — to wash
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. net — for catching
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. present — there
  8. present — a gift
  9. present — the time now
  10. net — after costs
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. ball — a great time
  13. court — of a king
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. club — a group
  16. scale — in music
  17. court — of law
  18. court — for sport
  19. scale — size or range
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. shower — rain
  22. ball — a dance
  23. net — in sport
  24. leaves — lets stay

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