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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. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. When will it ________________ you to start?
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. club — for golf
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wind — moving air
  6. club — a group
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. suit — clothes
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. kick — in football
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. season — of the year
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. suit — in cards
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. season — in sport
  20. mine — for digging
  21. snap — to click
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. suit — to fit
  24. kick — with a leg

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