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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.

Make a worksheet

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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. march — the month
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. march — the month
  6. charge — electricity
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. prune — to trim
  9. land — ground
  10. court — of law
  11. land — a country
  12. prune — to trim
  13. march — music
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. charge — a price
  16. charge — in control
  17. court — of a king
  18. court — for sport

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