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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. object — a thing
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. net — in sport
  5. season — in sport
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. net — after costs
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. stock — shares
  10. object — an aim
  11. season — of the year
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. object — to protest
  14. net — for catching
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. chest — of your body
  17. chest — of your body
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. stock — goods
  24. chest — a box

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