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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. root — of a word
  4. march — music
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. drill — army training
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. root — of a plant
  10. drill — a practice
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. field — farmland
  15. march — the month
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. field — for sport
  18. drill — the tool
  19. mine — for digging
  20. field — a subject
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. root — the cause
  23. march — the month
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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