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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. clip — for paper
  3. club — for dancing
  4. scale — in music
  5. clip — a video
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. mark — a grade
  8. scale — size or range
  9. season — in sport
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. ball — a dance
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. club — for golf
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. rush — hurry
  19. ball — a great time
  20. season — of the year
  21. clip — to cut
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. mark — a trace

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