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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. can — a tin
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. club — for golf
  6. ball — a dance
  7. row — a line
  8. clip — to cut
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. ball — a great time
  11. can — a tin
  12. row — to paddle
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. club — a group
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. capital — a city
  19. capital — money
  20. clip — for paper
  21. can — to be able to
  22. clip — a video
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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