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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.

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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: fan · fork · roll · cell · chest · mouse · cabinet · march

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. chest — of your body
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. cell — in biology
  6. march — the month
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. march — the month
  14. roll — a list
  15. march — music
  16. chest — a box
  17. chest — of your body
  18. cell — a phone
  19. roll — a cake
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. fork — in a road
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. roll — on a roll

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