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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. land — a country
  3. hand — help
  4. current — happening now
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. ball — a great time
  8. club — for golf
  9. club — for dancing
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. mug — a cup
  12. capital — a city
  13. hand — in cards
  14. land — ground
  15. capital — money
  16. land — to come down
  17. club — a group
  18. mug — to rob
  19. date — the fruit
  20. mug — a face
  21. current — of water
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. current — electric
  24. date — on the calendar

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