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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. bass — the fish
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. race — humankind
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. present — the time now
  8. clip — to cut
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. clip — for paper
  12. bass — low music
  13. stem — to come from
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. race — a contest
  17. race — the arms race
  18. present — a gift
  19. present — there
  20. clip — a video
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. stem — of a plant

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