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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. file — a tool
  3. object — to protest
  4. hand — help
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. rest — a break
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. rest — what's left
  10. file — a line of people
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. object — a thing
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. object — an aim
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. kick — in football
  20. hand — in cards
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. file — a document
  23. rest — what's left
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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