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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. net — in sport
  4. spring — a coil
  5. spell — letters
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. cold — not warm
  8. cold — an illness
  9. club — for dancing
  10. net — after costs
  11. spring — the season
  12. net — for catching
  13. bore — to tire
  14. squash — the sport
  15. club — for golf
  16. spell — a short time
  17. spring — of water
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. board — a committee
  21. spell — magic
  22. squash — to crush
  23. board — to get on
  24. bore — to drill

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