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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. charge — a price
  3. row — a line
  4. cap — a lid
  5. bear — the animal
  6. charge — electricity
  7. fall — to drop
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. charge — in control
  10. bear — the animal
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. fall — the season
  14. fall — to drop
  15. bound — obliged
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. bound — tied together
  19. cap — a hat
  20. bound — certain
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. cap — of ice
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. row — to paddle

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