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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: spell · bat · straw · club · board · sharp · object · bound

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. bound — certain
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. spell — letters
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. object — to protest
  11. club — for dancing
  12. object — a thing
  13. club — a group
  14. spell — magic
  15. board — a committee
  16. board — to get on
  17. bound — tied together
  18. bat — the animal
  19. object — an aim
  20. sharp — clever
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. spell — a short time
  23. bound — obliged
  24. bat — in an idiom

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