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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. fine — high quality
  3. wound — an injury
  4. club — for golf
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. field — farmland
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. game — a match
  11. game — wild animals
  12. wound — an injury
  13. club — for dancing
  14. mug — to rob
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. fine — all right
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. club — a group
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. field — for sport
  23. mug — a face
  24. field — a subject

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