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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. spell — magic
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. cap — of ice
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. spell — letters
  14. sharp — clever
  15. rock — a stone
  16. band — a ring
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. rock — music
  19. cap — a hat
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. band — a music group
  22. bark — to shout
  23. cap — a lid
  24. spell — a short time

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