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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: swing · club · kid · ground · bear · safe · cue · pitcher

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. club — for golf
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. cue — a signal
  5. ground — the earth
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. kid — child
  8. ground — a position
  9. ground — crushed
  10. swing — to play on
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. bear — the animal
  14. club — a group
  15. cue — for pool
  16. bear — the animal
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. swing — music
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. swing — in golf
  23. club — for dancing
  24. cue — a hint

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