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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. mark — a grade
  5. mark — a trace
  6. object — to protest
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. object — a thing
  10. face — to confront
  11. face — to point toward
  12. wind — moving air
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. drill — army training
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. object — an aim
  20. face — part of the head
  21. drill — the tool
  22. drill — a practice
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. fan — to cool the air

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