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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: saw · cold · fan · dip · stem · mouse · rest · squash

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. rest — what's left
  5. cold — an illness
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. saw — the tool
  9. saw — the tool
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. cold — not warm
  15. rest — what's left
  16. rest — a break
  17. squash — the sport
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. stem — to come from
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. squash — to crush
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. dip — to sink

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