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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. staff — employees
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. club — a group
  7. bass — the fish
  8. rock — music
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. mate — a partner
  11. lean — to bend
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. club — for golf
  15. mate — a friend
  16. mate — to breed
  17. staff — a stick
  18. bass — low music
  19. rock — a stone
  20. lean — thin
  21. staff — employees
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. cold — not warm
  24. rock — to move gently

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