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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.

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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: suit · mine · fan · sharp · file · fall · pit · prune

  1. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. prune — to trim
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. file — a tool
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. pit — a hole
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. pit — in a race
  9. suit — clothes
  10. sharp — clever
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. file — a document
  14. fall — to drop
  15. file — a line of people
  16. suit — in cards
  17. fall — the season
  18. prune — to trim
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. mine — for digging
  23. fall — to drop
  24. prune — the fruit

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