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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. bear — the animal
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. field — farmland
  9. race — humankind
  10. rush — hurry
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. sharp — clever
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. field — a subject
  15. field — for sport
  16. plane — a tool
  17. chip — for betting
  18. race — a contest
  19. bear — the animal
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. race — the arms race
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. chip — to eat

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