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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 116 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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. vault — a safe
  7. race — the arms race
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. saw — the tool
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. capital — a city
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. saw — the tool
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. race — a contest
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. club — for golf
  21. capital — money
  22. race — humankind
  23. club — for dancing
  24. perch — the fish

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