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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. bound — tied together
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. present — a gift
  7. saw — the tool
  8. dip — to sink
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. present — there
  11. bound — obliged
  12. roll — a cake
  13. roll — a list
  14. mine — for digging
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. club — a group
  17. bound — certain
  18. present — the time now
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. club — for dancing
  21. saw — the tool
  22. capital — a city
  23. capital — money
  24. capital — a big letter

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