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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. club — a group
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. club — for golf
  6. land — a country
  7. pop — to visit
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. land — to come down
  10. drill — a practice
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. pop — soda
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. squash — to crush
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. squash — the sport
  19. drill — army training
  20. drill — the tool
  21. land — ground
  22. pop — music
  23. snap — to click
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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