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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  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 dancing
  2. board — to get on
  3. file — a document
  4. club — a group
  5. pop — soda
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. board — a committee
  9. cell — a phone
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. content — happy
  14. club — for golf
  15. file — a line of people
  16. pop — to visit
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. cell — in biology
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. file — a tool
  23. pop — music
  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