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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. rush — hurry
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. row — a line
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. rock — a stone
  11. squash — to crush
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. wake — a trail
  16. row — to paddle
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. rock — music
  21. squash — the sport
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. sharp — clever

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