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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. stem — to come from
  9. stock — goods
  10. fall — the season
  11. fall — to drop
  12. chest — of your body
  13. fall — to drop
  14. snap — to click
  15. stock — shares
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. chest — a box
  19. chest — of your body
  20. kick — in football
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. stem — a stem cell

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