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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: file · court · swing · face · fan · ground · wind · pop

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. face — part of the head
  3. swing — to play on
  4. ground — the earth
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. court — of a king
  7. face — to point toward
  8. wind — moving air
  9. pop — music
  10. court — of law
  11. file — a document
  12. court — for sport
  13. swing — in golf
  14. pop — to visit
  15. pop — soda
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. swing — music
  18. ground — crushed
  19. ground — a position
  20. wind — moving air
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. file — a line of people
  23. face — to confront
  24. file — a tool

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