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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. land — a country
  3. press — a publisher
  4. key — the most important part
  5. fall — to drop
  6. club — a group
  7. row — a line
  8. fall — the season
  9. chair — a leader
  10. fall — to drop
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. last — finally
  13. land — ground
  14. last — to go on
  15. key — for a lock
  16. club — for dancing
  17. last — final
  18. row — to paddle
  19. land — to come down
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. press — newspapers
  23. key — in music
  24. press — to push

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