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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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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: mug · club · hide · cell · court · wound · last · snap

  1. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. cell — in biology
  3. club — a group
  4. cell — a phone
  5. wound — an injury
  6. club — for dancing
  7. court — for sport
  8. mug — a face
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. court — of law
  11. last — final
  12. wound — an injury
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. snap — to click
  17. last — to go on
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. club — for golf
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. last — finally
  23. mug — to rob
  24. court — of a king

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