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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: fan · swing · cue · ball · fork · rule · net · march

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. rule — a law
  3. ball — a great time
  4. swing — music
  5. swing — to play on
  6. march — the month
  7. swing — in golf
  8. cue — a signal
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. cue — a hint
  12. fork — in a road
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. cue — for pool
  15. rule — government
  16. net — after costs
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. ball — a dance
  20. march — the month
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. march — music
  24. net — in sport

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