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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 met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. mine — for digging
  3. cell — a phone
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. club — a group
  6. club — for dancing
  7. march — music
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. craft — a skill
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. march — the month
  12. club — for golf
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. mate — to breed
  15. cell — in biology
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. march — the month
  19. row — to paddle
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. mate — a friend
  22. row — a line
  23. craft — boats
  24. mate — a partner

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