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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. pit — a hole
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. wind — moving air
  8. current — electric
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. wind — moving air
  12. hand — in cards
  13. current — of water
  14. cap — of ice
  15. pop — soda
  16. pop — music
  17. cap — a hat
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. current — happening now
  20. pit — in a race
  21. cap — a lid
  22. hand — help
  23. pop — to visit
  24. straw — dry grass

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