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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 120 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: mate · shower · clip · game · cap · foot · mouse · fan

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. game — a match
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. foot — a measure
  7. clip — a video
  8. cap — a hat
  9. shower — rain
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. mate — a friend
  13. mate — to breed
  14. clip — to cut
  15. shower — to wash
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. game — wild animals
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. clip — for paper
  20. cap — a lid
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. mate — a partner
  24. fan — a supporter

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