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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. saw — the tool
  3. fall — to drop
  4. date — the fruit
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. vault — a safe
  7. fall — to drop
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. file — a tool
  11. fall — the season
  12. mug — to rob
  13. saw — the tool
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. mug — a cup
  16. file — a document
  17. file — a line of people
  18. hand — help
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. hand — in cards

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