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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. fine — all right
  3. can — a tin
  4. ground — the earth
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fine — high quality
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. bear — the animal
  10. can — to be able to
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. can — a tin
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. cold — an illness
  17. cold — not warm
  18. ground — crushed
  19. perch — the fish
  20. bear — the animal
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. pass — a permit
  23. ground — a position
  24. perch — for a bird

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