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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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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: row · racket · jam · spell · nail · club · hand · game

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. club — for golf
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. hand — help
  9. hand — in cards
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. spell — a short time
  12. spell — letters
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. spell — magic
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. game — a match
  17. row — to paddle
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. game — wild animals
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. club — a group
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. row — a line

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