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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. chair — a leader
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. spring — the season
  5. bat — the animal
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. spring — of water
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. spell — a short time
  12. fine — high quality
  13. spell — magic
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. fine — all right
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. rock — music
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. spell — letters
  22. rock — a stone
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. spring — a coil

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