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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. dip — to sink
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. pass — a permit
  8. wind — moving air
  9. content — happy
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. wound — an injury
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. kid — child
  14. wind — moving air
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. kick — in football
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. wound — an injury
  21. content — the amount
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. kid — to tease

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