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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: squash · club · ball · bound · face · tear · stock · bat

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. tear — to rip
  3. face — to confront
  4. ball — a dance
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. squash — to crush
  7. club — for golf
  8. tear — from crying
  9. bound — obliged
  10. squash — the sport
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. stock — goods
  15. bound — tied together
  16. ball — a great time
  17. bound — certain
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. stock — shares
  20. face — to point toward
  21. face — part of the head
  22. tear — from crying
  23. club — for dancing
  24. bat — the animal

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