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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. kid — to tease
  4. bound — certain
  5. club — a group
  6. wound — an injury
  7. drill — a practice
  8. wound — an injury
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. drill — army training
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. swing — to play on
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. swing — in golf
  15. kid — child
  16. deal — to handle
  17. drill — the tool
  18. bound — tied together
  19. pass — a permit
  20. bound — obliged
  21. swing — music
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. club — for golf
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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