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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: coach · leaves · fan · capital · last · snap · can · club

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. can — a tin
  5. snap — to click
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. club — for dancing
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. club — a group
  14. can — to be able to
  15. capital — a city
  16. last — finally
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. can — a tin
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. capital — money
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. last — final
  23. last — to go on
  24. leaves — of a tree

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