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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. bound — certain
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. stock — goods
  6. march — the month
  7. mate — a friend
  8. march — music
  9. mate — to breed
  10. ground — crushed
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. ground — a position
  13. bound — obliged
  14. mate — a partner
  15. swing — to play on
  16. march — the month
  17. swing — in golf
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. ground — the earth
  20. club — for dancing
  21. club — a group
  22. stock — shares
  23. swing — music
  24. bound — tied together

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