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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. cue — a hint
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. capital — money
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. saw — the tool
  8. cue — a signal
  9. cue — for pool
  10. rest — what's left
  11. saw — the tool
  12. rest — what's left
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. rest — a break
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. capital — a city
  18. wind — moving air
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. wind — moving air
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. perch — the fish
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. wind — to turn a key

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