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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 116 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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. cold — not warm
  4. cold — an illness
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. kid — child
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. net — for catching
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. net — after costs
  11. net — in sport
  12. charge — electricity
  13. club — a group
  14. charge — in control
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. kid — to tease
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. club — for dancing
  19. pass — a permit
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. bass — low music
  22. bass — the fish
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. charge — a price

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