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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 120 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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. club — a group
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. cue — for pool
  5. wind — moving air
  6. cue — a signal
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. game — wild animals
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. cue — a hint
  11. kick — in football
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. wind — moving air
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. pitch — completely
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. chip — for betting
  22. club — for dancing
  23. game — a match
  24. chip — to eat

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