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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 120 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: cue · bore · staff · wind · swing · court · fan · bat

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. cue — a hint
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. bat — the animal
  6. court — of a king
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bore — to drill
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. swing — in golf
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. bore — to tire
  13. cue — for pool
  14. court — of law
  15. staff — employees
  16. swing — music
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. court — for sport
  19. staff — employees
  20. staff — a stick
  21. cue — a signal
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. swing — to play on
  24. wind — moving air

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