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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. spring — a coil
  3. club — a group
  4. club — for golf
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. court — for sport
  7. file — a line of people
  8. race — a contest
  9. bear — the animal
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. dip — to sink
  12. court — of law
  13. bear — the animal
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. spring — the season
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. file — a tool
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. court — of a king
  20. club — for dancing
  21. file — a document
  22. race — humankind
  23. spring — of water
  24. race — the arms race

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