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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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. bowl — a dish
  4. drill — the tool
  5. can — a tin
  6. squash — to crush
  7. can — to be able to
  8. can — a tin
  9. degree — an amount
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. drill — army training
  12. degree — temperature
  13. saw — the tool
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. present — there
  18. degree — from a university
  19. saw — the tool
  20. drill — a practice
  21. present — a gift
  22. squash — the sport
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. present — the time now

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