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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 120 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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  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. club — for dancing
  2. band — a ring
  3. can — a tin
  4. last — finally
  5. band — a music group
  6. current — electric
  7. current — of water
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. can — a tin
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. mine — for digging
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. net — in sport
  15. current — happening now
  16. last — to go on
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. last — final
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. net — after costs
  21. can — to be able to
  22. club — for golf
  23. net — for catching
  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