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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. swing — to play on
  3. club — for dancing
  4. squash — to crush
  5. craft — a skill
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. stock — goods
  8. club — a group
  9. squash — the sport
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. swing — in golf
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. can — a tin
  14. stock — shares
  15. craft — boats
  16. can — a tin
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. court — of a king
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. court — of law
  21. club — for golf
  22. can — to be able to
  23. swing — music
  24. court — for sport

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