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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: wave · club · kid · hide · mug · net · pitch · mine

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. net — for catching
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. mine — for digging
  8. kid — to tease
  9. net — in sport
  10. mug — a cup
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. net — after costs
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. mug — to rob
  18. kid — child
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. club — for dancing
  21. mug — a face
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. pitch — completely
  24. club — a group

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