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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. land — ground
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. club — for dancing
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. snap — to click
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. chair — a leader
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. land — a country
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. land — to come down
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. club — a group
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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