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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. land — a country
  3. ground — the earth
  4. ground — a position
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. bark — to shout
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. shower — rain
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. ground — crushed
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. shower — to wash
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. ball — a great time
  17. ball — a dance
  18. bass — low music
  19. land — ground
  20. land — to come down
  21. club — for dancing
  22. bass — the fish
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. club — a group

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