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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. tear — to rip
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. tear — from crying
  5. date — the fruit
  6. drill — army training
  7. press — newspapers
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. press — a publisher
  10. press — to push
  11. band — a music group
  12. snap — to click
  13. lean — to bend
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. tear — from crying
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. lean — thin
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. band — a ring
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. drill — a practice
  22. drill — the tool
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. date — on the calendar

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