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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. pitch — completely
  4. staff — a stick
  5. wind — moving air
  6. bear — the animal
  7. content — happy
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. rest — a break
  10. rest — what's left
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. staff — employees
  15. rest — what's left
  16. wind — moving air
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. bear — the animal
  20. content — the amount
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. staff — employees
  24. pitch — a sports field

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