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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 120 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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. kid — child
  6. root — of a plant
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. kid — to tease
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. squash — to crush
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. root — of a word
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. root — the cause
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. bass — low music
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. sharp — clever
  22. bass — the fish
  23. squash — the sport
  24. racket — for tennis

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