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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. club — a group
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — finally
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. bass — low music
  7. club — for golf
  8. wound — an injury
  9. bass — the fish
  10. hand — help
  11. key — for a lock
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. last — final
  15. key — the most important part
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. key — in music
  19. stock — shares
  20. stock — goods
  21. hand — in cards
  22. wound — an injury
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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