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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. rush — hurry
  3. spring — the season
  4. club — for golf
  5. swing — to play on
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. bark — to shout
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. bulb — for light
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. club — a group
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. swing — in golf
  15. spring — of water
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. club — for dancing
  18. plane — a tool
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. spring — a coil
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. bulb — for light
  24. swing — music

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