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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. rest — a break
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. rest — what's left
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. bark — to shout
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. season — in sport
  12. clip — for paper
  13. fall — to drop
  14. mine — for digging
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. fall — to drop
  17. rest — what's left
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. clip — a video
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. season — of the year
  23. clip — to cut
  24. fan — a supporter

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