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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 116 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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. row — a line
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. pit — in a race
  6. vault — a safe
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. wax — to grow
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. cell — a phone
  13. cell — in biology
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. pit — a hole
  16. game — a match
  17. pound — a weight
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. game — wild animals
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. row — to paddle

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