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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 120 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: club · ball · spring · bark · pit · mate · cell · kick

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. cell — in biology
  5. pit — in a race
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. cell — a phone
  8. mate — a friend
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. ball — a dance
  11. mate — a partner
  12. club — for dancing
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. mate — to breed
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. club — a group
  18. bark — to shout
  19. ball — a great time
  20. spring — the season
  21. spring — of water
  22. pit — a hole
  23. kick — in football
  24. spring — a coil

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