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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. That must've been a ________________.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. lean — thin
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. season — in sport
  9. club — a group
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. fine — all right
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. saw — the tool
  14. rush — hurry
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. fine — high quality
  17. rule — government
  18. rule — a law
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. lean — to bend
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. season — of the year
  23. saw — the tool
  24. club — for golf

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