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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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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: bay · ground · kid · mark · swing · face · club · cell

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. club — a group
  3. kid — child
  4. swing — in golf
  5. kid — to tease
  6. mark — a trace
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. face — to confront
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. ground — crushed
  11. swing — music
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. ground — a position
  14. club — for dancing
  15. swing — to play on
  16. face — part of the head
  17. cell — in biology
  18. mark — a grade
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. ground — the earth
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. face — to point toward
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. cell — a phone

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