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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: swing · file · pop · spell · bat · shower · cabinet · fan

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. pop — music
  4. file — a tool
  5. file — a document
  6. swing — in golf
  7. shower — rain
  8. pop — soda
  9. shower — to wash
  10. spell — a short time
  11. bat — the animal
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. file — a line of people
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. swing — music
  21. pop — to visit
  22. spell — letters
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. spell — magic

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