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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. can — a tin
  3. wake — a trail
  4. drill — a practice
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. can — to be able to
  7. shower — to wash
  8. shower — rain
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. can — a tin
  11. prune — to trim
  12. chest — of your body
  13. drill — the tool
  14. chest — a box
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. drill — army training
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. prune — to trim
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. chest — of your body
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. fan — to cool the air

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