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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. stand — to bear
  3. land — to come down
  4. track — a song
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. shower — rain
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. mug — to rob
  12. track — a path
  13. mug — a face
  14. staff — a stick
  15. staff — employees
  16. shower — to wash
  17. staff — employees
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. wax — to grow
  21. land — a country
  22. track — to keep track
  23. mug — a cup
  24. land — ground

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