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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. staff — employees
  3. key — for a lock
  4. band — a ring
  5. staff — a stick
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. key — the most important part
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. wind — moving air
  11. lean — thin
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. band — a music group
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. lean — to bend
  20. snap — to click
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. staff — employees
  23. key — in music
  24. wind — moving air

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