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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 120 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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. file — a tool
  5. last — finally
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. shower — rain
  9. shower — to wash
  10. file — a document
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. last — to go on
  13. board — a committee
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. kick — in football
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. file — a line of people
  19. tube — the underground
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. tube — a container
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. board — to get on
  24. last — final

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