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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. band — a ring
  3. degree — from a university
  4. fall — the season
  5. degree — an amount
  6. fall — to drop
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. fall — to drop
  10. saw — the tool
  11. craft — boats
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. spring — a coil
  14. degree — temperature
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. saw — the tool
  17. rush — hurry
  18. band — a music group
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. spring — the season
  21. spring — of water
  22. craft — a skill
  23. fan — a supporter
  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