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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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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: swing · club · charge · degree · drill · rule · pop · game

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. charge — in control
  3. degree — an amount
  4. club — a group
  5. pop — music
  6. game — a match
  7. swing — in golf
  8. swing — to play on
  9. drill — the tool
  10. pop — to visit
  11. rule — a law
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. charge — a price
  14. drill — a practice
  15. pop — soda
  16. club — for dancing
  17. drill — army training
  18. degree — from a university
  19. degree — temperature
  20. swing — music
  21. charge — electricity
  22. game — wild animals
  23. rule — government
  24. game — a kind of play

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