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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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 — in golf
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. cap — a hat
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. cap — a lid
  7. net — after costs
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. swing — music
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. net — in sport
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. mine — for digging
  17. net — for catching
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. game — wild animals
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. pass — a permit
  22. cap — of ice
  23. game — a match
  24. swing — to play on

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