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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 like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. fall — to drop
  3. club — for dancing
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. fall — to drop
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. club — for golf
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. rash — hasty
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. wind — moving air
  18. rash — a series
  19. club — a group
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. fall — the season
  23. wind — moving air
  24. toast — the most admired

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