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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: file · wake · mark · cold · board · swing · pass · sharp

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. board — a committee
  3. pass — a permit
  4. cold — not warm
  5. sharp — clever
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. swing — in golf
  8. mark — a grade
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. swing — music
  11. wake — a trail
  12. file — a document
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. file — a tool
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. mark — a trace
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. file — a line of people
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. board — to get on
  23. cold — an illness
  24. pass — to spend time

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