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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. tear — from crying
  3. firm — a company
  4. game — a match
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. hand — in cards
  8. bulb — for light
  9. tear — from crying
  10. game — wild animals
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. mug — a cup
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. hand — help
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. bat — the animal
  17. tear — to rip
  18. bulb — for light
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. mug — a face
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. firm — steady
  23. firm — decided
  24. mug — to rob

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