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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: game · lie · ball · fan · jam · rest · club · tube

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. club — for dancing
  3. game — a match
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. club — for golf
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. rest — a break
  9. ball — a dance
  10. ball — a great time
  11. club — a group
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. rest — what's left
  15. lie — to recline
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. tube — a container
  19. rest — what's left
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. game — wild animals
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. tube — the underground
  24. lie — an untruth

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