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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 116 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. tear — to rip
  3. spring — the season
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. court — of law
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. tear — from crying
  8. court — for sport
  9. spring — a coil
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. court — of a king
  13. charge — in control
  14. spring — of water
  15. wax — to grow
  16. charge — a price
  17. tear — from crying
  18. charge — electricity

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