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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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. club — a group
  5. ground — crushed
  6. fall — to drop
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. fall — to drop
  9. drill — army training
  10. club — for dancing
  11. rash — hasty
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. rash — a series
  15. drill — the tool
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. chip — for betting
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. fall — the season
  21. chip — to eat
  22. ground — a position
  23. ground — the earth
  24. drill — a practice

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