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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. club — for golf
  3. rock — music
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. pit — a hole
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. land — a country
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. vault — a safe
  10. land — ground
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. spring — the season
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. land — to come down
  16. spring — a coil
  17. pit — in a race
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. rock — a stone
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. club — for dancing
  22. spring — of water
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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