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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. bound — tied together
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. chest — of your body
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. club — for golf
  8. present — a gift
  9. mine — for digging
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. bound — certain
  12. track — to keep track
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. chest — a box
  15. track — a song
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. present — there
  19. track — a path
  20. bound — obliged
  21. present — the time now
  22. club — a group
  23. chest — of your body
  24. pitcher — a jug

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