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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: chair · squash · bulb · tube · fan · mine · saw · march

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. tube — a container
  6. bulb — for light
  7. march — the month
  8. tube — the underground
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. saw — the tool
  11. chair — a leader
  12. saw — the tool
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. squash — to crush
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. march — music
  20. march — the month
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. bulb — for light
  24. mine — for digging

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