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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: perch · game · mate · fan · squash · kid · trunk · cap

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. cap — a hat
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. game — wild animals
  5. mate — to breed
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. game — a match
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. cap — of ice
  12. kid — child
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. cap — a lid
  15. perch — the fish
  16. squash — to crush
  17. mate — a partner
  18. mate — a friend
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. kid — to tease
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. squash — the sport
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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