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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. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. court — for sport
  4. perch — the fish
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. track — a path
  7. kid — to tease
  8. track — a song
  9. club — for dancing
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. kid — child
  12. wound — an injury
  13. plane — a tool
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. court — of a king
  18. wound — an injury
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. court — of law
  22. club — a group
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. track — to keep track

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