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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. When will it ________________ you to start?
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. season — in sport
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bat — the animal
  7. suit — to fit
  8. suit — clothes
  9. suit — in cards
  10. pound — a weight
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. season — of the year
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. plane — a tool
  19. rash — a series
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. saw — the tool
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. saw — the tool
  24. plane — an aircraft

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