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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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. file — a document
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. prune — to trim
  5. field — farmland
  6. land — a country
  7. rock — a stone
  8. press — to push
  9. land — to come down
  10. board — a committee
  11. file — a tool
  12. field — a subject
  13. prune — to trim
  14. press — a publisher
  15. board — to get on
  16. rock — music
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. press — newspapers
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. file — a line of people
  22. land — ground
  23. field — for sport
  24. board — a flat piece

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