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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. file — a line of people
  3. swing — to play on
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. march — the month
  8. ball — a dance
  9. file — a tool
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. rest — what's left
  12. file — a document
  13. rest — what's left
  14. rest — a break
  15. swing — music
  16. march — the month
  17. march — music
  18. swing — in golf
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. club — for golf
  21. snap — to click
  22. club — a group
  23. ball — a great time
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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