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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. club — for dancing
  4. rash — hasty
  5. cap — of ice
  6. cap — a hat
  7. club — for golf
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. rash — a series
  11. mark — a grade
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. stem — to come from
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. cap — a lid
  24. mark — a trace

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