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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. clip — a video
  5. net — in sport
  6. cold — an illness
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. cold — not warm
  9. drill — the tool
  10. chip — to eat
  11. staff — a stick
  12. drill — army training
  13. staff — employees
  14. net — for catching
  15. drill — a practice
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. staff — employees
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. fine — high quality
  20. chip — for betting
  21. net — after costs
  22. fine — all right
  23. clip — for paper
  24. clip — to cut

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