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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. pop — soda
  3. squash — the sport
  4. fall — to drop
  5. can — a tin
  6. squash — to crush
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. club — for dancing
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. club — a group
  12. bat — the animal
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. pop — to visit
  15. fall — the season
  16. fall — to drop
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. can — to be able to
  19. ball — a great time
  20. club — for golf
  21. wind — moving air
  22. can — a tin
  23. ball — a dance
  24. wind — moving air

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