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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. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. hand — in cards
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. ball — a dance
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. ball — a great time
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. hand — help
  18. band — a ring
  19. race — humankind
  20. toast — bread
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. race — a contest
  23. race — the arms race
  24. band — a music group

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