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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. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. cue — for pool
  3. content — happy
  4. last — final
  5. last — finally
  6. spring — a coil
  7. cue — a signal
  8. net — in sport
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. spring — of water
  11. last — to go on
  12. club — for golf
  13. club — a group
  14. net — for catching
  15. content — the amount
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. track — a path
  18. cue — a hint
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. net — after costs
  21. track — to keep track
  22. spring — the season
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. track — a song

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