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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. spring — the season
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. spring — a coil
  6. file — a line of people
  7. file — a tool
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. ball — a great time
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. lean — thin
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. spring — of water
  15. sharp — clever
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. craft — a skill
  18. file — a document
  19. lean — to bend
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. ball — a dance
  22. craft — boats
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. straw — a straw man

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