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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. field — for sport
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. club — for golf
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. club — for dancing
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. capital — money
  11. game — wild animals
  12. rash — a series
  13. staff — employees
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. staff — employees
  16. field — farmland
  17. capital — a city
  18. field — a subject
  19. kid — to tease
  20. kid — child
  21. staff — a stick
  22. game — a match
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. rash — hasty

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