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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 116 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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. deal — to handle
  4. court — of a king
  5. court — for sport
  6. root — of a plant
  7. root — of a word
  8. rash — a series
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. cap — a lid
  12. cap — a hat
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. rash — hasty
  15. wound — an injury
  16. bat — the animal
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. court — of law
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. root — the cause
  21. wound — an injury
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. cap — of ice

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