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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. pass — a permit
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. lie — to recline
  11. clip — a video
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. cold — an illness
  15. cold — not warm
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. fork — in a road
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. clip — for paper
  22. clip — to cut
  23. saw — the tool
  24. saw — the tool

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