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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. lean — thin
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. lean — to bend
  6. court — of law
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. bass — the fish
  10. capital — money
  11. court — for sport
  12. snap — to click
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. spell — letters
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. court — of a king
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. bass — low music
  20. capital — a city
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. spell — magic

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