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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. can — to be able to
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. bulb — for light
  7. pit — a hole
  8. capital — money
  9. lean — to bend
  10. lean — thin
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. drill — the tool
  13. can — a tin
  14. field — a subject
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. pit — in a race
  17. capital — a city
  18. can — a tin
  19. drill — a practice
  20. bulb — for light
  21. drill — army training
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. field — for sport
  24. field — farmland

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