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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. row — to paddle
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. kick — in football
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. charge — electricity
  10. charge — a price
  11. file — a tool
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. file — a line of people
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. row — a line
  17. root — the cause
  18. hand — help
  19. root — of a word
  20. hand — in cards
  21. file — a document
  22. root — of a plant
  23. charge — in control
  24. mouse — for a computer

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