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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: rest · last · club · bat · firm · land · bulb · fine

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. land — to come down
  3. rest — a break
  4. bat — the animal
  5. fine — all right
  6. land — a country
  7. club — a group
  8. last — finally
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. rest — what's left
  13. last — final
  14. rest — what's left
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. firm — decided
  17. bulb — for light
  18. last — to go on
  19. club — for golf
  20. land — ground
  21. fine — high quality
  22. firm — a company
  23. bulb — for light
  24. firm — steady

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