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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: swing · fan · racket · face · mouse · cold · foot · chip

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. swing — to play on
  3. face — part of the head
  4. swing — music
  5. chip — to eat
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. cold — an illness
  11. cold — not warm
  12. face — to confront
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. chip — for betting
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. foot — a measure
  19. face — to point toward
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. swing — in golf
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. foot — the bottom

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