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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. club — a group
  3. last — to go on
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. ball — a great time
  6. perch — the fish
  7. root — of a plant
  8. root — of a word
  9. pop — soda
  10. club — for dancing
  11. last — finally
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. pop — music
  15. stock — shares
  16. stock — goods
  17. ball — a dance
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. last — final
  21. root — the cause
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. pop — to visit

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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