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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 116 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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. tear — from crying
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. court — for sport
  6. court — of law
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. tear — from crying
  10. fall — to drop
  11. tear — to rip
  12. fall — to drop
  13. wake — a trail
  14. court — of a king
  15. fall — the season
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. land — ground
  18. stand — to bear
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. land — to come down
  23. land — a country
  24. leaves — lets stay

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