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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. ball — a dance
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. chip — to eat
  6. spell — letters
  7. spell — a short time
  8. clip — for paper
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. ball — a great time
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. clip — to cut
  14. clip — a video
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. spell — magic
  17. club — for dancing
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. chip — for betting
  20. branch — a division
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. club — for golf
  24. nail — for a hammer

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