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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. can — a tin
  3. cold — an illness
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. can — to be able to
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. craft — a skill
  9. court — of law
  10. shower — rain
  11. court — of a king
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. pitch — completely
  14. court — for sport
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. cold — not warm
  18. craft — boats
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. shower — to wash
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. foot — a measure
  24. can — a tin

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