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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. mug — to rob
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. degree — an amount
  5. lie — to recline
  6. mine — for digging
  7. drill — army training
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. degree — from a university
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. drill — the tool
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. degree — temperature
  16. mug — a cup
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. hand — help
  19. club — for dancing
  20. club — a group
  21. mug — a face
  22. drill — a practice
  23. hand — in cards
  24. lie — an untruth

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