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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 seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. club — for golf
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. ground — crushed
  5. ball — a dance
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. rash — hasty
  8. ground — the earth
  9. club — for dancing
  10. club — a group
  11. last — to go on
  12. ball — a great time
  13. cell — a phone
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. bank — for money
  16. bank — of a river
  17. rash — a series
  18. last — final
  19. bank — for money
  20. last — finally
  21. cell — in biology
  22. wake — a trail
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. ground — a position

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