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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 met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. club — a group
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. last — finally
  6. last — to go on
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. club — for dancing
  9. spring — a coil
  10. club — for golf
  11. saw — the tool
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. mine — for digging
  15. fine — high quality
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. last — final
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. spring — of water
  20. spring — the season
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. saw — the tool
  24. fine — all right

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