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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. object — an aim
  3. bark — to shout
  4. fall — to drop
  5. file — a document
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. tube — a container
  10. spring — the season
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. spring — a coil
  13. fall — the season
  14. object — to protest
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. spring — of water
  17. tube — the underground
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. fall — to drop
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. object — a thing
  23. file — a line of people
  24. file — a tool

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