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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 120 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. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. bore — to drill
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. bat — the animal
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. capital — a city
  11. scale — size or range
  12. bore — to tire
  13. capital — money
  14. scale — in music
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. patient — a sick person

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