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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. mine — for digging
  3. saw — the tool
  4. present — a gift
  5. present — there
  6. bass — low music
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. bound — certain
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. bass — the fish
  11. present — the time now
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. saw — the tool
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. club — for golf
  18. club — a group
  19. bound — obliged
  20. ground — crushed
  21. ground — the earth
  22. bound — tied together
  23. ground — a position
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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