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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. club — a group
  5. spell — a short time
  6. club — for dancing
  7. land — a country
  8. fall — to drop
  9. land — to come down
  10. fall — the season
  11. degree — from a university
  12. degree — an amount
  13. spell — letters
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. land — ground
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. roll — a list
  18. spell — magic
  19. kid — child
  20. degree — temperature
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. club — for golf
  23. kid — to tease
  24. fall — to drop

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