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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. file — a line of people
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. file — a document
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. race — humankind
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. race — the arms race
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. mark — a grade
  12. race — a contest
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. mark — a trace
  18. fork — in a road
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. file — a tool
  23. rash — hasty
  24. rash — a series

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