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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: fan · race · sharp · saw · bulb · season · swing · pitch

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. race — the arms race
  5. swing — in golf
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. race — a contest
  11. sharp — clever
  12. bulb — for light
  13. saw — the tool
  14. bulb — for light
  15. swing — to play on
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. season — in sport
  18. saw — the tool
  19. swing — music
  20. season — of the year
  21. race — humankind
  22. pitch — completely
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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