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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. drill — a practice
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. spring — a coil
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. shower — rain
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. shower — to wash
  9. net — for catching
  10. file — a tool
  11. spring — the season
  12. fall — to drop
  13. fall — to drop
  14. file — a document
  15. drill — army training
  16. net — after costs
  17. spring — of water
  18. net — in sport
  19. drill — the tool
  20. file — a line of people
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. foot — a measure
  24. chair — a leader

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