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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. cue — a signal
  3. net — in sport
  4. net — after costs
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. court — of law
  7. lean — thin
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. board — a committee
  10. net — for catching
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. cue — a hint
  13. court — for sport
  14. lean — to bend
  15. board — to get on
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. court — of a king
  18. cue — for pool

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