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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. hand — in cards
  6. spell — letters
  7. can — a tin
  8. hand — help
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. wind — moving air
  12. spell — a short time
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. can — a tin
  16. mine — for digging
  17. spell — magic
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. can — to be able to
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. wind — moving air
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. safe — out of danger

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