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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. rock — music
  3. race — a contest
  4. roll — a list
  5. sharp — clever
  6. race — the arms race
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. rock — a stone
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. race — humankind
  12. club — a group
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. kid — to tease
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. kid — child
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. deal — to handle
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. roll — a cake
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. club — for dancing

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