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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. club — for dancing
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. race — the arms race
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. pop — music
  7. land — a country
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. bulb — for light
  10. club — a group
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. hand — help
  13. hand — in cards
  14. bulb — for light
  15. race — humankind
  16. fine — high quality
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. land — ground
  20. fine — all right
  21. pop — to visit
  22. club — for golf
  23. land — to come down
  24. pop — soda

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