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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. present — a gift
  3. shower — to wash
  4. march — the month
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. present — the time now
  7. shower — rain
  8. march — music
  9. march — the month
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. present — there
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. squash — the sport
  16. mine — for digging
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. rule — government
  19. kick — in football
  20. rule — a law
  21. squash — to crush
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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