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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. content — the amount
  3. club — for golf
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. content — happy
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. game — wild animals
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. staff — employees
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. bear — the animal
  13. staff — a stick
  14. land — a country
  15. game — a match
  16. pit — in a race
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. club — a group
  19. land — ground
  20. land — to come down
  21. staff — employees
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. bear — the animal
  24. pit — a hole

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