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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. spell — magic
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. cap — a hat
  7. spell — a short time
  8. wind — moving air
  9. cap — of ice
  10. chest — a box
  11. squash — to crush
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bear — the animal
  14. squash — the sport
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. spell — letters
  17. cap — a lid
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. chest — of your body
  20. chest — of your body
  21. rush — hurry
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. wind — moving air
  24. fan — a supporter

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