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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. prune — to trim
  3. content — happy
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. cap — a hat
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. cap — a lid
  11. face — part of the head
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. stock — shares
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. face — to point toward
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. content — the amount
  18. stock — goods
  19. face — to confront
  20. cap — of ice
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. prune — to trim
  24. fan — to cool the air

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