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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 120 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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. wind — moving air
  3. court — of law
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. capital — money
  15. dip — to sink
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. wind — moving air
  21. capital — a city
  22. court — for sport
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. court — of a king

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