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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. club — for dancing
  3. bass — low music
  4. spring — of water
  5. root — the cause
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. root — of a word
  8. cell — in biology
  9. root — of a plant
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. spring — a coil
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. cell — a phone
  20. spring — the season
  21. club — a group
  22. fine — all right
  23. fine — high quality
  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