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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. charge — in control
  5. face — part of the head
  6. charge — electricity
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. charge — a price
  9. chair — a leader
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. field — farmland
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. wind — moving air
  16. scale — size or range
  17. face — to point toward
  18. band — a ring
  19. field — a subject
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. face — to confront
  22. band — a music group
  23. scale — in music
  24. field — for sport

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