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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 120 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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. net — in sport
  3. bank — for money
  4. wind — moving air
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. land — ground
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. land — a country
  11. rock — music
  12. land — to come down
  13. club — for dancing
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. wind — moving air
  18. bank — for money
  19. stem — to come from
  20. club — a group
  21. rock — a stone
  22. net — after costs
  23. net — for catching
  24. bank — of a river

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