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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. rest — what's left
  3. club — for dancing
  4. clip — to cut
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. club — for golf
  7. rest — a break
  8. clip — for paper
  9. file — a document
  10. mug — a face
  11. file — a tool
  12. bore — to drill
  13. mug — to rob
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. rest — what's left
  16. bore — to tire
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. file — a line of people
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. mug — a cup
  23. bark — to shout
  24. clip — a video

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