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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 124 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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. last — final
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. last — to go on
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. dip — to sink
  13. game — wild animals
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. last — finally
  16. game — a match
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. land — to come down
  20. vault — a safe
  21. bore — to tire
  22. land — ground
  23. land — a country
  24. bore — to drill

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