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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. object — a thing
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. object — to protest
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. object — an aim
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. field — a subject
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. hand — in cards
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. hand — help
  21. field — for sport
  22. bark — to shout
  23. field — farmland
  24. foot — a measure

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