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

Word bank: plane · club · cold · sharp · rule · cap · pass · swing

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. cap — of ice
  3. rule — a law
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. swing — in golf
  6. swing — music
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. plane — a tool
  10. swing — to play on
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. club — for dancing
  14. pass — a permit
  15. cold — an illness
  16. cap — a lid
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. cold — not warm
  20. rule — government
  21. cap — a hat
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. club — for golf
  24. sharp — clever

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