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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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. swing — to play on
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. bass — the fish
  6. band — a ring
  7. fall — to drop
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. band — a music group
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. fall — the season
  13. fall — to drop
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. court — of law
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. swing — music
  19. court — of a king
  20. court — for sport
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. swing — in golf
  23. sharp — clever
  24. bass — low 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