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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. club — a group
  4. ground — a position
  5. track — a song
  6. club — for golf
  7. kid — child
  8. spring — of water
  9. ground — crushed
  10. prune — to trim
  11. track — a path
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. prune — to trim
  15. track — to keep track
  16. ground — the earth
  17. spring — a coil
  18. spring — the season
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. club — for dancing
  24. kid — to tease

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