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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. hand — in cards
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. rash — hasty
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. cell — in biology
  9. club — a group
  10. cell — a phone
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. club — for dancing
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. bat — the animal
  16. pop — soda
  17. club — for golf
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. hand — help
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. pop — music
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. pop — to visit
  24. cell — in a prison

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