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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. swing — in golf
  3. hand — in cards
  4. club — for golf
  5. current — electric
  6. pop — music
  7. chair — a leader
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. mate — a friend
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. current — of water
  12. pop — to visit
  13. current — happening now
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. swing — music
  16. club — for dancing
  17. swing — to play on
  18. mate — a partner
  19. field — for sport
  20. hand — help
  21. mate — to breed
  22. field — a subject
  23. pop — soda
  24. field — farmland

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