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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. That was a fun ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. game — a match
  3. club — a group
  4. game — wild animals
  5. club — for dancing
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. wind — moving air
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. wind — moving air
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. roll — a cake
  18. roll — a list
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. mine — for digging
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. wind — to turn a key

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