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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 116 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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. bulb — for light
  4. fall — the season
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. sharp — clever
  9. game — a match
  10. bulb — for light
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. game — wild animals
  13. fall — to drop
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. fall — to drop
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. wake — a trail
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. bulb — of a plant

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