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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. net — for catching
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. bulb — for light
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. mine — for digging
  10. race — the arms race
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. race — humankind
  13. net — after costs
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. net — in sport
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. race — a contest
  20. shower — rain
  21. shower — to wash
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. fork — in a road
  24. fork — a garden tool

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