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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 120 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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. file — a line of people
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. field — for sport
  6. field — farmland
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. fine — all right
  9. spring — the season
  10. rock — music
  11. fine — high quality
  12. spring — a coil
  13. file — a document
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. club — for golf
  17. file — a tool
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. field — a subject
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. club — a group
  22. rock — a stone
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. club — for dancing

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