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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: swing · bulb · season · pass · sharp · mine · game · roll

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. swing — to play on
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. roll — a cake
  10. sharp — clever
  11. bulb — for light
  12. game — wild animals
  13. mine — for digging
  14. game — a match
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. season — in sport
  19. roll — a list
  20. bulb — for light
  21. pass — a permit
  22. swing — music
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. swing — in golf

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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