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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. wind — moving air
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. key — for a lock
  5. club — a group
  6. ball — a dance
  7. key — in music
  8. last — finally
  9. net — after costs
  10. last — final
  11. wind — moving air
  12. club — for dancing
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. row — a line
  15. last — to go on
  16. club — for golf
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. key — the most important part
  20. net — in sport
  21. net — for catching
  22. row — to paddle
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. ball — a great time

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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