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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. bark — to shout
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. pit — in a race
  8. scale — size or range
  9. bear — the animal
  10. sharp — clever
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. wake — a trail
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. game — a match
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. scale — in music
  17. bear — the animal
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. pit — a hole
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. game — wild animals
  24. scale — for weighing

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