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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. bat — the animal
  3. fall — the season
  4. tear — from crying
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. row — to paddle
  7. row — a line
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. fall — to drop
  10. tear — from crying
  11. fall — to drop
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. cell — in biology
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. cell — a phone
  20. pit — in a race
  21. tear — to rip
  22. pit — a hole
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. bowl — a dish

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