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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 124 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. False peace will not ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. last — to go on
  3. kid — child
  4. last — finally
  5. squash — to crush
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. face — to confront
  8. current — electric
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. kid — to tease
  11. bore — to drill
  12. face — to point toward
  13. squash — the sport
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. band — a music group
  16. current — of water
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. current — happening now
  19. face — part of the head
  20. band — a ring
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. bore — to tire
  23. last — final
  24. fan — to cool the air

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