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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. mine — for digging
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. club — a group
  6. row — to paddle
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. shower — rain
  9. track — to keep track
  10. row — a line
  11. field — a subject
  12. club — for golf
  13. spell — a short time
  14. field — for sport
  15. spell — letters
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. shower — to wash
  18. track — a path
  19. track — a song
  20. club — for dancing
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. field — farmland
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. fan — a supporter

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