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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. content — the amount
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. vault — a safe
  7. press — a publisher
  8. cap — a lid
  9. cap — of ice
  10. content — happy
  11. game — a match
  12. wake — a trail
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. cap — a hat
  19. press — newspapers
  20. mark — a trace
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. press — to push
  23. mark — a grade
  24. game — wild animals

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