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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. object — an aim
  3. march — the month
  4. object — to protest
  5. file — a tool
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. race — humankind
  8. file — a line of people
  9. bank — for money
  10. plane — a tool
  11. race — a contest
  12. bank — of a river
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. race — the arms race
  15. object — a thing
  16. march — music
  17. march — the month
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. bank — for money
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. perch — the fish
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. file — a document
  24. plane — in geometry

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