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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. key — for a lock
  3. club — for dancing
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. rock — a stone
  7. key — in music
  8. bark — to shout
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. capital — money
  12. capital — a city
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. key — the most important part
  16. row — to paddle
  17. deal — to handle
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. row — a line
  20. club — a group
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. rock — music
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. row — a quarrel

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