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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. bulb — for light
  4. club — for dancing
  5. kick — in football
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. club — for golf
  11. row — a line
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. row — to paddle
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. bat — the animal
  21. chair — a leader
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. bulb — for light
  24. leaves — of a tree

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