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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. saw — the tool
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. lean — thin
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. lean — to bend
  7. root — of a word
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. saw — the tool
  12. root — the cause
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. perch — the fish
  16. shower — to wash
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. root — of a plant
  19. shower — rain
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. deal — to handle

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