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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. roll — a cake
  6. game — wild animals
  7. perch — the fish
  8. current — of water
  9. roll — a list
  10. club — for dancing
  11. game — a match
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. current — electric
  14. snap — to click
  15. cell — in biology
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. cell — a phone
  20. club — a group
  21. current — happening now
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. vault — a safe
  24. game — a kind of play

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