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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: sharp · game · fine · race · last · stand · mine · fan

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fine — high quality
  4. race — a contest
  5. stand — to bear
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. race — humankind
  8. game — wild animals
  9. last — finally
  10. game — a match
  11. race — the arms race
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. sharp — clever
  14. fine — all right
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. last — to go on
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. mine — for digging

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