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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. wind — moving air
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. degree — from a university
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. band — a ring
  11. wake — a trail
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. stock — shares
  17. degree — an amount
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. stock — goods
  20. band — a music group
  21. degree — temperature
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. wind — moving air
  24. leaves — of a tree

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