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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. track — to keep track
  4. squash — to crush
  5. scale — in music
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. mine — for digging
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. track — a path
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. squash — the sport
  14. rule — government
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. scale — size or range
  21. rule — a law
  22. track — a song
  23. shower — rain
  24. shower — to wash

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