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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 · bore · club · perch · game · bat · swing · pop

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. swing — in golf
  5. swing — to play on
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. perch — the fish
  8. bore — to drill
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. club — for dancing
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. swing — music
  13. club — a group
  14. pop — soda
  15. pop — to visit
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. game — wild animals
  18. bore — to tire
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. bat — the animal
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. club — for golf
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. pop — music

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