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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. mine — for digging
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. rule — government
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. rule — a law
  8. tear — from crying
  9. club — a group
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. pop — music
  13. tear — from crying
  14. pop — to visit
  15. wake — a trail
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. pop — soda
  20. club — for dancing
  21. roll — a list
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. tear — to rip
  24. roll — a cake

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