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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 116 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: tear · sharp · dip · fan · bass · club · snap · lash

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. club — for dancing
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. club — a group
  8. bass — low music
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. snap — to click
  11. club — for golf
  12. dip — to sink
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. tear — from crying
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. tear — from crying
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. tear — to rip
  21. sharp — clever
  22. bass — the fish
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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