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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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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: chest · sharp · game · club · swing · last · firm · fine

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. last — final
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. chest — of your body
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. firm — a company
  8. swing — music
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. last — finally
  11. fine — all right
  12. swing — in golf
  13. firm — steady
  14. club — a group
  15. last — to go on
  16. fine — high quality
  17. chest — a box
  18. chest — of your body
  19. swing — to play on
  20. club — for golf
  21. game — a match
  22. game — wild animals
  23. firm — decided
  24. club — for dancing

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