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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 don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. cap — a lid
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. race — the arms race
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. spring — of water
  8. cap — a hat
  9. stem — to come from
  10. cap — of ice
  11. spring — the season
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. spring — a coil
  14. race — a contest
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. race — humankind
  18. rock — music
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. rock — a stone
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. leaves — to go away

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