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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 116 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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. club — a group
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. court — for sport
  5. mug — to rob
  6. mug — a face
  7. cold — an illness
  8. track — to keep track
  9. squash — to crush
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. court — of a king
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. track — a path
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. mug — a cup
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. cold — not warm
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. track — a song
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. club — for golf
  23. court — of law
  24. squash — the sport

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