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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: rock · jam · hand · field · club · leaves · clip · mark

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. mark — a grade
  3. mark — a trace
  4. clip — a video
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. rock — a stone
  8. hand — in cards
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. clip — for paper
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. field — for sport
  13. club — for dancing
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. clip — to cut
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. rock — music
  19. club — for golf
  20. field — farmland
  21. hand — help
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. field — a subject

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