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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. craft — boats
  3. ground — the earth
  4. stand — to bear
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. ground — a position
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. bat — the animal
  11. shower — to wash
  12. craft — a skill
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. shower — rain
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. ball — a great time
  21. ground — crushed
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. ball — a dance

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