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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. court — for sport
  3. court — of law
  4. club — for dancing
  5. club — for golf
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. bank — of a river
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. dip — to sink
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. season — of the year
  12. bear — the animal
  13. file — a tool
  14. court — of a king
  15. bank — for money
  16. season — in sport
  17. bear — the animal
  18. file — a line of people
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. file — a document
  21. rash — hasty
  22. rash — a series
  23. bank — for money
  24. club — a group

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