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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. can — to be able to
  4. date — the fruit
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. snap — to click
  7. bear — the animal
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. can — a tin
  11. cell — in biology
  12. clip — a video
  13. clip — to cut
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. cell — a phone
  18. clip — for paper
  19. can — a tin
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. bear — the animal
  24. fan — a supporter

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