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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. pop — to visit
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. board — a committee
  7. pop — soda
  8. date — the fruit
  9. drill — army training
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. pop — music
  12. field — a subject
  13. board — to get on
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. field — for sport
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. drill — the tool
  20. drill — a practice
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. field — farmland
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. jam — in traffic

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