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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. bass — low music
  3. bear — the animal
  4. cell — a phone
  5. club — a group
  6. bear — the animal
  7. key — the most important part
  8. mug — a face
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. key — for a lock
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. squash — to crush
  14. club — for dancing
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. cell — in biology
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. mug — to rob
  19. squash — the sport
  20. club — for golf
  21. mug — a cup
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. key — in music
  24. bass — the fish

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