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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.

Make a worksheet

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: fan · hide · tear · squash · current · patient · season · chair

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. current — happening now
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. tear — from crying
  8. squash — to crush
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. tear — to rip
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. tear — from crying
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. chair — a leader
  16. current — electric
  17. season — in sport
  18. current — of water
  19. season — of the year
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. chair — a professorship

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