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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. present — a gift
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. track — to keep track
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. lean — to bend
  8. net — in sport
  9. net — for catching
  10. lean — thin
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. present — the time now
  13. kick — in football
  14. last — finally
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. last — final
  17. track — a song
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. track — a path
  22. present — there
  23. last — to go on
  24. net — after costs

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