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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. present — there
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. content — the amount
  7. spring — a coil
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. spring — of water
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. file — a line of people
  12. mate — to breed
  13. mate — a friend
  14. present — a gift
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. mate — a partner
  17. file — a document
  18. file — a tool
  19. foot — a measure
  20. spring — the season
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. content — happy
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. present — the time now

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