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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 116 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. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. clip — for paper
  6. clip — a video
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. bark — to shout
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. net — after costs
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. chip — for betting
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. clip — to cut
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. chip — to eat
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. net — in sport
  24. net — for catching

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