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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. club — for golf
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. land — to come down
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. roll — a cake
  7. land — a country
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. wound — an injury
  10. wound — an injury
  11. land — ground
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. perch — the fish
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. rest — a break
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. rest — what's left
  18. roll — a list
  19. club — for dancing
  20. prune — to trim
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. prune — to trim
  23. rest — what's left
  24. perch — for a bird

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