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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. rash — a series
  3. rash — hasty
  4. land — to come down
  5. bound — tied together
  6. bound — obliged
  7. row — a line
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. ball — a dance
  10. chip — to eat
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. ball — a great time
  14. ground — a position
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. land — ground
  17. ground — crushed
  18. land — a country
  19. chip — for betting
  20. bound — certain
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. ground — the earth
  24. row — to paddle

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