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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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. clip — a video
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. degree — temperature
  6. object — an aim
  7. object — to protest
  8. bear — the animal
  9. face — to point toward
  10. race — humankind
  11. race — the arms race
  12. object — a thing
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. face — part of the head
  15. clip — for paper
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. clip — to cut
  18. face — to confront
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. degree — an amount
  21. bear — the animal
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. degree — from a university
  24. race — a contest

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