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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 116 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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. season — in sport
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. root — of a plant
  6. hand — help
  7. degree — temperature
  8. swing — music
  9. degree — an amount
  10. hand — in cards
  11. swing — in golf
  12. root — the cause
  13. ground — the earth
  14. club — for dancing
  15. ground — crushed
  16. season — of the year
  17. swing — to play on
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. degree — from a university
  20. ground — a position
  21. club — a group
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. root — of a word
  24. hide — to keep secret

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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