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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. pop — music
  3. prune — to trim
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. file — a document
  6. prune — to trim
  7. bore — to drill
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. chair — a leader
  10. pop — to visit
  11. spring — of water
  12. spring — the season
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. spring — a coil
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. file — a line of people
  20. bore — to tire
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. file — a tool
  24. pop — soda

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