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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 116 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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. spell — a short time
  3. saw — the tool
  4. club — for golf
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. band — a music group
  7. land — ground
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. club — for dancing
  10. band — a ring
  11. sharp — clever
  12. land — a country
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. squash — to crush
  15. spell — letters
  16. plane — a tool
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. club — a group
  21. saw — the tool
  22. spell — magic
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. land — to come down

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