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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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. object — an aim
  4. kid — to tease
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. object — to protest
  7. mark — a trace
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. saw — the tool
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. kid — child
  12. mark — a grade
  13. net — in sport
  14. net — after costs
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. kick — in football
  17. dip — to sink
  18. saw — the tool
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. object — a thing
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. net — for catching
  24. dip — a sauce

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