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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. land — a country
  4. chair — a leader
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. spring — the season
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. land — to come down
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. spring — a coil
  18. kick — in football
  19. land — ground
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. deal — to handle
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. spring — of water

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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