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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 120 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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. fine — all right
  3. spring — of water
  4. capital — money
  5. club — for golf
  6. spell — letters
  7. charge — in control
  8. fine — high quality
  9. field — farmland
  10. field — for sport
  11. charge — electricity
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. spring — the season
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. spell — a short time
  16. club — for dancing
  17. field — a subject
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. spell — magic
  20. capital — a city
  21. charge — a price
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. spring — a coil
  24. cabinet — ministers

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