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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. degree — from a university
  3. stand — to bear
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. bore — to tire
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. club — for dancing
  9. club — a group
  10. degree — an amount
  11. prune — to trim
  12. prune — to trim
  13. face — to confront
  14. face — part of the head
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. degree — temperature
  18. face — to point toward
  19. bore — to drill
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. stand — for spectators

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