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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: chip · spell · cold · stand · straw · fan · track · prune

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. track — to keep track
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. chip — for betting
  7. spell — a short time
  8. prune — to trim
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. track — a path
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. spell — magic
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. cold — an illness
  17. prune — to trim
  18. track — a song
  19. stand — to bear
  20. cold — not warm
  21. chip — to eat
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. stand — on your feet

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