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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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. trunk — of a tree
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. season — of the year
  6. capital — money
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. charge — electricity
  9. wind — moving air
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. season — in sport
  12. club — a group
  13. charge — a price
  14. wind — moving air
  15. charge — in control
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. bound — obliged
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. mine — for digging
  22. capital — a city
  23. bound — tied together
  24. bound — certain

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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