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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. club — a group
  3. file — a document
  4. stock — shares
  5. club — for dancing
  6. net — in sport
  7. file — a line of people
  8. net — for catching
  9. wound — an injury
  10. mine — for digging
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. wound — an injury
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. net — after costs
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. stock — goods
  24. file — a tool

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