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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. rest — what's left
  4. clip — for paper
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. spell — magic
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. clip — a video
  10. spell — a short time
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. spell — letters
  13. pitch — completely
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. track — to keep track
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. rest — a break
  18. clip — to cut
  19. game — wild animals
  20. track — a song
  21. game — a match
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. rest — what's left
  24. track — a path

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