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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  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. face — part of the head
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. track — a path
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. face — to confront
  7. track — to keep track
  8. last — final
  9. court — for sport
  10. track — a song
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. face — to point toward
  14. last — finally
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. root — the cause
  17. court — of law
  18. bark — to shout
  19. court — of a king
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. last — to go on
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. root — of a word
  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