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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. ball — a dance
  3. ball — a great time
  4. date — the fruit
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. press — newspapers
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. wax — to grow
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. bulb — for light
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. bulb — for light
  13. club — for dancing
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. press — to push
  16. club — for golf
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. kid — child
  20. cold — an illness
  21. kid — to tease
  22. cold — not warm
  23. press — a publisher
  24. cold — the Cold War

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