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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. race — humankind
  4. snap — to click
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. bulb — for light
  11. wound — an injury
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. race — a contest
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. bulb — for light
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. race — the arms race
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. date — the fruit
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. wound — an injury
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. trunk — of a car

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