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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. club — for dancing
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. wind — moving air
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. content — happy
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. wind — moving air
  15. shower — rain
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. snap — to click
  18. shower — to wash
  19. content — the amount
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. club — for golf
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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