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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. club — a group
  3. mate — a friend
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. mate — to breed
  6. cap — a hat
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. club — for dancing
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. cap — a lid
  14. shower — rain
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. hand — in cards
  17. cap — of ice
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. shower — to wash
  20. stand — to bear
  21. mate — a partner
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. wake — a trail
  24. club — for golf

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