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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 120 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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. fall — the season
  5. capital — a city
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. net — in sport
  8. net — after costs
  9. fork — in a road
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. capital — money
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. fall — to drop
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. fall — to drop
  17. net — for catching
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. rush — hurry
  20. stand — to bear
  21. bass — low music
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. bass — the fish

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