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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 116 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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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: fan · ball · pitch · object · wake · mine · cabinet · cold

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. ball — a great time
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. cold — an illness
  7. object — a thing
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. wake — a trail
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. object — to protest
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. cold — not warm
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. ball — a dance
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. pitch — completely
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. mine — for digging
  24. object — an aim

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