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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 can't ________________ this cold.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. mine — for digging
  5. face — part of the head
  6. face — to point toward
  7. current — of water
  8. shower — rain
  9. cap — a lid
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. cap — of ice
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. file — a tool
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. current — happening now
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. file — a line of people
  18. shower — to wash
  19. cap — a hat
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. current — electric
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. face — to confront
  24. file — a document

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