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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. can — to be able to
  3. object — to protest
  4. sharp — clever
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. wind — moving air
  7. can — a tin
  8. roll — a cake
  9. object — an aim
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. object — a thing
  12. band — a music group
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. can — a tin
  16. rest — what's left
  17. rest — a break
  18. wind — moving air
  19. rest — what's left
  20. band — a ring
  21. roll — a list
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. sharp — with an edge

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