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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. cap — a lid
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. mine — for digging
  6. wax — to grow
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. charge — electricity
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. pound — a weight
  12. swing — to play on
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. swing — music
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. fork — in a road
  17. cap — a hat
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. swing — in golf
  20. charge — in control
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. cap — of ice
  24. charge — a price

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