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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: chair · cap · swing · bass · rush · sharp · roll · last

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. cap — a hat
  4. roll — a list
  5. roll — a cake
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. sharp — clever
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. last — to go on
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. last — finally
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. swing — in golf
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. bass — the fish
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. rush — hurry
  19. swing — music
  20. cap — of ice
  21. chair — a leader
  22. cap — a lid
  23. bass — low music
  24. last — final

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