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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 120 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 · pit · club · chip · squash · mine · march · row

  1. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. pit — a hole
  3. chip — to eat
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. club — for golf
  7. club — for dancing
  8. march — music
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. march — the month
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. march — the month
  13. row — to paddle
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. mine — for digging
  17. squash — the sport
  18. club — a group
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. squash — to crush
  21. pit — in a race
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. chip — for betting

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