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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: drill · plane · pit · kid · bound · fan · swing · bowl

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. swing — in golf
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. drill — a practice
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. bound — certain
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. pit — in a race
  11. swing — to play on
  12. pit — a hole
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. plane — a tool
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. bound — obliged
  17. kid — child
  18. drill — army training
  19. kid — to tease
  20. swing — music
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. drill — the tool
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. bound — tied together

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