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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. chest — a box
  5. pop — music
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. track — a song
  8. current — happening now
  9. current — electric
  10. track — to keep track
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. pop — to visit
  15. pop — soda
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. chair — a leader
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. chest — of your body
  20. track — a path
  21. club — a group
  22. club — for dancing
  23. chest — of your body
  24. current — of water

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