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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. clip — to cut
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. fine — high quality
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. clip — a video
  11. fine — all right
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. spell — letters
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. pit — in a race
  16. pit — a hole
  17. spell — magic
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. clip — for paper
  20. spell — a short time
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. pitch — completely
  24. leaves — to go away

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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