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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 116 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: chip · row · rash · court · ball · spell · fan · squash

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. chip — for betting
  4. rash — a series
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. court — for sport
  10. spell — magic
  11. spell — letters
  12. court — of law
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. squash — to crush
  15. ball — a dance
  16. squash — the sport
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. row — a line
  19. rash — hasty
  20. chip — to eat
  21. court — of a king
  22. spell — a short time
  23. ball — a great time
  24. row — to paddle

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