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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. scale — size or range
  3. ground — crushed
  4. ground — the earth
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. capital — a city
  9. hand — in cards
  10. season — of the year
  11. snap — to click
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. capital — money
  15. scale — in music
  16. hand — help
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. season — in sport
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. rush — hurry
  24. ground — a position

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