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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: club · mate · chair · cap · field · lash · cue · ball

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. cue — a hint
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. mate — a partner
  6. cap — of ice
  7. cap — a lid
  8. chair — a leader
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. cue — for pool
  11. club — for golf
  12. field — farmland
  13. mate — a friend
  14. field — a subject
  15. cap — a hat
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. ball — a dance
  18. mate — to breed
  19. field — for sport
  20. cue — a signal
  21. club — a group
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. club — for dancing

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