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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: craft · drill · mine · fan · sharp · swing · mark · rest

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. mark — a trace
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. craft — a skill
  6. drill — the tool
  7. craft — boats
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. swing — music
  10. drill — army training
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. rest — what's left
  13. drill — a practice
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. sharp — clever
  16. swing — in golf
  17. mine — for digging
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. rest — what's left
  20. mark — a grade
  21. swing — to play on
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. rest — a break

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