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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 116 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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. lean — to bend
  4. degree — from a university
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. pit — in a race
  8. club — for golf
  9. tear — from crying
  10. degree — temperature
  11. tear — from crying
  12. lean — thin
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. degree — an amount
  15. pit — a hole
  16. club — a group
  17. tear — to rip
  18. club — for dancing
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. pitcher — a jug

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