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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. chip — for betting
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. shower — to wash
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. wake — a trail
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. field — farmland
  11. bulb — for light
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. field — a subject
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. field — for sport
  20. shower — rain
  21. bulb — for light
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. chip — to eat

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