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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: bowl · fine · game · saw · track · wax · swing · mine

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. fine — high quality
  6. saw — the tool
  7. swing — to play on
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. mine — for digging
  10. track — a path
  11. saw — the tool
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. swing — music
  14. wax — to grow
  15. swing — in golf
  16. game — wild animals
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. track — a song
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. game — a match
  21. fine — all right
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. track — to keep track
  24. fine — a penalty

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