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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. pop — soda
  4. rash — a series
  5. pop — to visit
  6. file — a line of people
  7. file — a tool
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. bound — tied together
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. key — the most important part
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. pop — music
  14. file — a document
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. bound — certain
  17. pitch — completely
  18. key — for a lock
  19. mine — for digging
  20. key — in music
  21. rash — hasty
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. bound — obliged
  24. pitch — a sports field

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