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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. spell — magic
  3. spell — a short time
  4. club — for golf
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. spell — letters
  7. current — electric
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. squash — the sport
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. wind — moving air
  12. game — a match
  13. wind — moving air
  14. game — wild animals
  15. club — a group
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. rash — a series
  20. current — of water
  21. squash — to crush
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. rash — hasty
  24. current — happening now

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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