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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. court — of law
  3. tube — a container
  4. rest — a break
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. club — for golf
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. saw — the tool
  9. court — of a king
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. net — in sport
  12. race — humankind
  13. club — for dancing
  14. net — after costs
  15. net — for catching
  16. court — for sport
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. saw — the tool
  19. race — a contest
  20. rest — what's left
  21. tube — the underground
  22. race — the arms race
  23. rest — what's left
  24. perch — the fish

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