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

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. face — to point toward
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. swing — in golf
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. face — to confront
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. sharp — clever
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. face — part of the head
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. chest — of your body
  15. swing — to play on
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. chest — of your body
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. chest — a box
  22. swing — music
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. perch — the fish

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