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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  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. firm — steady
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. firm — a company
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. bass — low music
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. fork — in a road
  10. row — a line
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. firm — decided
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. file — a document
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. file — a line of people
  17. rest — what's left
  18. rest — a break
  19. bass — the fish
  20. rest — what's left
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. file — a tool
  23. racket — for tennis
  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