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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. race — humankind
  3. spring — a coil
  4. saw — the tool
  5. roll — a cake
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. march — the month
  10. roll — a list
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. spring — the season
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. race — the arms race
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. march — music
  20. saw — the tool
  21. race — a contest
  22. spring — of water
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. march — the month

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