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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. swing — to play on
  6. club — a group
  7. fall — the season
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. mark — a grade
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. fall — to drop
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. mark — a trace
  16. swing — music
  17. fall — to drop
  18. swing — in golf
  19. club — for golf
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. sharp — clever
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. mine — for digging
  24. pass — a permit

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