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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. club — for dancing
  3. clip — a video
  4. land — a country
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. staff — employees
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. press — newspapers
  9. file — a line of people
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. file — a tool
  12. clip — for paper
  13. club — a group
  14. staff — employees
  15. press — to push
  16. staff — a stick
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. press — a publisher
  20. clip — to cut
  21. land — to come down
  22. land — ground
  23. rush — hurry
  24. file — a document

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