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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. bass — the fish
  4. bass — low music
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. root — of a word
  8. rest — a break
  9. root — the cause
  10. sharp — clever
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. rest — what's left
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. pit — in a race
  15. rest — what's left
  16. content — happy
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. pit — a hole
  20. prune — to trim
  21. content — the amount
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. prune — to trim
  24. root — of a plant

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