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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. spring — of water
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. pound — a weight
  6. current — electric
  7. current — happening now
  8. dip — to sink
  9. club — for dancing
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. swing — to play on
  12. spring — a coil
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. net — after costs
  15. net — in sport
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. net — for catching
  18. swing — in golf
  19. kid — child
  20. club — a group
  21. current — of water
  22. swing — music
  23. spring — the season
  24. kid — to tease

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