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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 had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. ball — a great time
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. club — for golf
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. march — the month
  10. ball — a dance
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. club — a group
  16. march — music
  17. row — a line
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. kick — in football
  20. march — the month
  21. row — to paddle
  22. mine — for digging
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. club — for dancing

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