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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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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: suit · shower · nail · band · pass · game · mine · swing

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. pass — a permit
  4. suit — to fit
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. suit — in cards
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. game — a match
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. suit — clothes
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. shower — rain
  14. mine — for digging
  15. shower — to wash
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. swing — in golf
  18. band — a ring
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. game — wild animals
  22. swing — to play on
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. band — a music group

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