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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 chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. rule — a law
  4. court — for sport
  5. club — for golf
  6. club — for dancing
  7. file — a tool
  8. cell — in biology
  9. court — of law
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. present — the time now
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. present — a gift
  14. file — a line of people
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. court — of a king
  17. file — a document
  18. fine — all right
  19. fine — high quality
  20. present — there
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. rule — government
  24. cell — a phone

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