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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 · chair · wound · sharp · pit · club · bowl · stick

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. wound — an injury
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. sharp — clever
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. pit — a hole
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. chair — a leader
  10. club — for golf
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. pit — in a race
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. wound — an injury
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. club — a group
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. club — for dancing
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. sharp — exactly

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