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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. club — for dancing
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. stock — goods
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. bass — low music
  8. stock — shares
  9. bat — the animal
  10. pitch — completely
  11. club — a group
  12. hand — help
  13. tube — a container
  14. club — for golf
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. mug — a cup
  17. tube — the underground
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. mug — to rob
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. bass — the fish
  24. hand — in cards

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