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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 120 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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. club — for dancing
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. rule — a law
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. rule — government
  9. can — a tin
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. club — a group
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. can — to be able to
  15. last — final
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. content — happy
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. last — finally
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. can — a tin
  22. last — to go on
  23. bat — the animal
  24. content — the amount

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