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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. club — for golf
  3. hand — help
  4. mug — to rob
  5. rock — a stone
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. mug — a cup
  10. club — a group
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. mug — a face
  13. mine — for digging
  14. hand — in cards
  15. club — for dancing
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. ball — a great time
  19. kick — in football
  20. stock — shares
  21. ball — a dance
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. stock — goods

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