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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
468
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 · mine · fan · scale · coach · nail · wave · track

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. track — to keep track
  3. game — a match
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. track — a path
  11. scale — in music
  12. mine — for digging
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. track — a song
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. scale — size or range
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. game — wild animals
  24. wave — of the sea

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