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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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. branch — a division
  3. club — for golf
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. club — a group
  8. club — for dancing
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. suit — clothes
  11. content — happy
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. content — the amount
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. scale — size or range
  17. suit — to fit
  18. stand — to bear
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. kick — in football
  24. scale — in music

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