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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. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. wind — moving air
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. file — a document
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. file — a line of people
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. snap — to click
  12. net — after costs
  13. net — in sport
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. file — a tool
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. mine — for digging
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. net — for catching

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