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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. club — a group
  3. charge — a price
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. charge — electricity
  6. rock — music
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. rock — a stone
  10. degree — from a university
  11. club — for dancing
  12. hand — help
  13. degree — temperature
  14. content — the amount
  15. lean — thin
  16. degree — an amount
  17. hand — in cards
  18. club — for golf
  19. squash — to crush
  20. charge — in control
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. content — happy
  23. lean — to bend
  24. squash — the vegetable

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