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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. current — electric
  5. field — a subject
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. current — of water
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. field — farmland
  10. wake — a trail
  11. game — wild animals
  12. current — happening now
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. kick — in football
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. field — for sport
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. fine — all right
  22. fine — high quality
  23. game — a match
  24. wake — before a funeral

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