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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. drill — the tool
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. lean — to bend
  5. spell — a short time
  6. spell — letters
  7. band — a ring
  8. chest — of your body
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. spell — magic
  11. chest — of your body
  12. band — a music group
  13. chest — a box
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. shower — rain
  16. drill — a practice
  17. lean — thin
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. drill — army training
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. shower — to wash

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