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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. fine — all right
  4. bear — the animal
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. fine — high quality
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. content — the amount
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. file — a line of people
  13. vault — a safe
  14. club — for dancing
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. content — happy
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. season — of the year
  19. season — in sport
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. bear — the animal
  22. club — for golf
  23. file — a document
  24. file — a tool

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