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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. mug — a face
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. mug — a cup
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. mug — to rob
  8. hand — help
  9. hand — in cards
  10. shower — to wash
  11. spring — the season
  12. spring — of water
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. board — to get on
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. spring — a coil
  18. shower — rain
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. board — a committee
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. squash — the sport
  23. pitch — completely
  24. squash — to crush

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