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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. mate — a friend
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. cold — not warm
  5. mate — a partner
  6. club — for golf
  7. cold — an illness
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. wind — moving air
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. track — a song
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. deal — to handle
  15. squash — to crush
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. squash — the sport
  18. wind — moving air
  19. track — to keep track
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. mate — to breed
  22. kick — in football
  23. club — for dancing
  24. track — a path

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