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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: deal · content · cell · club · shower · object

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. club — a group
  4. object — an aim
  5. cell — a phone
  6. cell — in biology
  7. deal — to handle
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. object — a thing
  11. object — to protest
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. shower — to wash
  14. content — happy
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. club — for dancing
  17. shower — rain
  18. content — the amount

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