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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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. ground — a position
  5. ground — crushed
  6. can — to be able to
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. can — a tin
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. ground — the earth
  11. club — a group
  12. band — a ring
  13. can — a tin
  14. club — for golf
  15. file — a document
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. file — a tool
  18. shower — rain
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. band — a music group
  21. shower — to wash
  22. file — a line of people
  23. wake — a trail
  24. pass — a permit

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