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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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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: rock · fall · suit · present · fan · clip · tear · chair

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. clip — for paper
  4. rock — music
  5. tear — to rip
  6. suit — to fit
  7. fall — the season
  8. tear — from crying
  9. present — there
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. suit — in cards
  13. present — a gift
  14. chair — a leader
  15. suit — clothes
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. fall — to drop
  18. fall — to drop
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. clip — to cut
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. clip — a video
  23. tear — from crying
  24. rock — a stone

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