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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: fan · cap · row · tube · fine · cold · saw · bore

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. tube — a container
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. cold — not warm
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. cold — an illness
  9. row — a line
  10. cap — of ice
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. bore — to tire
  14. cap — a hat
  15. row — to paddle
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. fine — high quality
  18. tube — the underground
  19. fine — all right
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. bore — to drill
  22. cap — a lid
  23. fan — a supporter
  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