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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 · content · saw · cabinet · row · capital · fine · firm

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. content — happy
  3. firm — steady
  4. fine — high quality
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. saw — the tool
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. row — a line
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. firm — a company
  13. fine — all right
  14. content — the amount
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. saw — the tool
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. capital — a city
  19. capital — money
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. firm — decided
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. row — to paddle
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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