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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. fork — in a road
  7. rock — a stone
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. march — the month
  10. saw — the tool
  11. race — the arms race
  12. march — music
  13. race — a contest
  14. saw — the tool
  15. rock — music
  16. race — humankind
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. shower — rain
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. march — the month
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. shower — to wash

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