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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. bear — the animal
  4. cap — a lid
  5. march — the month
  6. rash — a series
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. rash — hasty
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. bear — the animal
  11. hand — help
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. sharp — clever
  15. hand — in cards
  16. march — music
  17. cap — of ice
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. march — the month
  23. cap — a hat
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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