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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 116 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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. content — happy
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. suit — in cards
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. kick — in football
  7. file — a document
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. file — a tool
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. plane — a tool
  15. wake — a trail
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. rash — hasty
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. suit — to fit
  20. suit — clothes
  21. rash — a series
  22. content — the amount
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. file — a line of people

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