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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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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: cold · club · suit · staff · ground · hand · pop · game

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. pop — soda
  3. ground — crushed
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. staff — a stick
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. suit — in cards
  8. suit — to fit
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. hand — in cards
  11. staff — employees
  12. game — wild animals
  13. cold — an illness
  14. ground — a position
  15. staff — employees
  16. club — for dancing
  17. suit — clothes
  18. pop — music
  19. cold — not warm
  20. game — a match
  21. club — a group
  22. hand — help
  23. pop — to visit
  24. club — for golf

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