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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. lie — to recline
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. shower — to wash
  5. file — a line of people
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. chest — of your body
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. chest — a box
  10. squash — to crush
  11. shower — rain
  12. chest — of your body
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. file — a tool
  16. squash — the sport
  17. file — a document
  18. fan — a supporter

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