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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 belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. club — for golf
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. swing — music
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. pit — in a race
  11. club — for dancing
  12. stock — goods
  13. present — there
  14. present — the time now
  15. capital — a city
  16. capital — money
  17. mine — for digging
  18. stock — shares
  19. swing — in golf
  20. swing — to play on
  21. present — a gift
  22. pit — a hole
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. mine — an explosive

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