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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. club — for golf
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. club — for dancing
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. mug — a face
  10. rash — hasty
  11. wound — an injury
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. mug — a cup
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. ground — crushed
  16. ground — the earth
  17. ground — a position
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. scale — size or range
  21. rash — a series
  22. scale — in music
  23. mug — to rob
  24. wake — a trail

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