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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. club — a group
  4. land — ground
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. cold — not warm
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. cold — an illness
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. land — a country
  11. mate — a friend
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. bear — the animal
  15. scale — in music
  16. bulb — for light
  17. mate — to breed
  18. scale — size or range
  19. club — for dancing
  20. land — to come down
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. bulb — for light
  23. bear — the animal
  24. mate — a partner

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