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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: fan · bulb · rash · ball · club · track · wax · row

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  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. club — for golf
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. wax — to grow
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. bulb — for light
  8. rash — hasty
  9. club — a group
  10. row — a line
  11. track — a path
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. track — a song
  14. rash — a series
  15. ball — a great time
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. club — for dancing
  20. track — to keep track
  21. bulb — for light
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. ball — a dance
  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