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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 120 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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. fork — in a road
  3. spring — the season
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. club — for golf
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. foot — a measure
  8. spring — a coil
  9. tube — the underground
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. spring — of water
  12. track — to keep track
  13. club — a group
  14. tube — a container
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. kid — child
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. kid — to tease
  20. track — a path
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. track — a song
  24. fork — a garden tool

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