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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. land — ground
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. file — a document
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. file — a tool
  8. march — the month
  9. file — a line of people
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. land — to come down
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. club — for dancing
  15. march — the month
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. club — for golf
  18. pit — in a race
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. pit — a hole
  22. bat — the animal
  23. march — music
  24. land — a country

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