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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. chip — to eat
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. bark — to shout
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. chip — for betting
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. shower — to wash
  16. field — for sport
  17. field — a subject
  18. shower — rain
  19. mark — a trace
  20. mark — a grade
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. stand — to bear
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. field — farmland

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