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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: bat · board · pass · fan · rash · fine · hide · march

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. board — to get on
  3. march — music
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. fine — high quality
  6. rash — hasty
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. fine — all right
  9. bat — the animal
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. march — the month
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. march — the month
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. board — a committee
  22. pass — a permit
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. rash — a series

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