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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 116 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: cap · lean · chair · fan · plane · pound · row · file

  1. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. cap — of ice
  3. lean — to bend
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. row — a line
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. pound — a weight
  8. cap — a lid
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. chair — a leader
  15. file — a tool
  16. file — a document
  17. plane — a tool
  18. lean — thin
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. row — to paddle
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. cap — a hat
  24. row — a quarrel

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