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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: band · swing · scale · fan · safe · can · chest · mine

  1. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. swing — music
  3. swing — to play on
  4. can — a tin
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. can — to be able to
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. scale — in music
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. chest — a box
  13. mine — for digging
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. band — a ring
  16. chest — of your body
  17. scale — size or range
  18. chest — of your body
  19. can — a tin
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. band — a music group
  22. swing — in golf
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. safe — a strongbox

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