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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. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. wound — an injury
  3. lean — to bend
  4. club — for dancing
  5. club — a group
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. mate — a friend
  8. cold — an illness
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. band — a music group
  11. mate — to breed
  12. lean — thin
  13. rock — a stone
  14. band — a ring
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. mate — a partner
  19. rock — music
  20. cold — not warm
  21. club — for golf
  22. foot — a measure
  23. wound — an injury
  24. band — a rubber band

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