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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 120 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 giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  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 dancing
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. rash — hasty
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. bass — the fish
  9. current — happening now
  10. rash — a series
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. club — a group
  13. rush — hurry
  14. clip — to cut
  15. clip — for paper
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. bass — low music
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. current — electric
  20. bat — the animal
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. club — for golf
  23. clip — a video
  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