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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. club — a group
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. staff — employees
  6. mine — for digging
  7. charge — electricity
  8. pop — music
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. pop — soda
  12. charge — a price
  13. staff — a stick
  14. charge — in control
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. club — for golf
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. staff — employees
  19. march — the month
  20. pop — to visit
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. march — music
  23. march — the month
  24. pitcher — a jug

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