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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. root — of a word
  3. shower — rain
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. season — of the year
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. season — in sport
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. scale — size or range
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. pass — a permit
  14. mine — for digging
  15. root — the cause
  16. court — of law
  17. scale — in music
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. court — of a king
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. root — of a plant
  22. court — for sport
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. shower — to wash

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