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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. race — a contest
  4. cue — a signal
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. court — of a king
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. bore — to drill
  9. tear — from crying
  10. pit — a hole
  11. can — a tin
  12. can — to be able to
  13. cue — a hint
  14. cue — for pool
  15. court — of law
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. can — a tin
  18. tear — to rip
  19. race — the arms race
  20. tear — from crying
  21. court — for sport
  22. bore — to tire
  23. race — humankind
  24. pit — in a race

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