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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 · cold · net · mouse · chip · sharp · fan · wax

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. net — in sport
  4. cold — not warm
  5. swing — music
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. chip — for betting
  9. net — after costs
  10. swing — in golf
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. sharp — clever
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. wax — to grow
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. chip — to eat
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. cold — an illness
  24. net — for catching

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