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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. key — for a lock
  4. club — for dancing
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. club — for golf
  9. squash — the sport
  10. club — a group
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. squash — to crush
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. key — in music
  16. key — the most important part
  17. game — a match
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. mine — for digging
  20. snap — to click
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. game — wild animals
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. hide — animal skin

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