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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. spell — letters
  3. rule — a law
  4. bark — to shout
  5. season — of the year
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. spell — a short time
  9. capital — money
  10. spell — magic
  11. capital — a city
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. band — a ring
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. season — in sport
  19. band — a music group
  20. rule — government
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. club — for golf
  23. club — for dancing
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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