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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cap · game · track · scale · mate · fan · chair · cold

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. scale — in music
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. track — to keep track
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. chair — a leader
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. game — a match
  10. track — a path
  11. cap — a lid
  12. cold — not warm
  13. game — wild animals
  14. track — a song
  15. mate — to breed
  16. mate — a friend
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. mate — a partner
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. cold — an illness
  22. cap — of ice
  23. scale — size or range
  24. cap — a hat

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