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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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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 · pass · tube · mate · chest · fall · kid

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. mate — a partner
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. tube — the underground
  6. fall — the season
  7. fork — in a road
  8. mate — to breed
  9. chest — of your body
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. chest — of your body
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. kid — to tease
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. pass — a permit
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. fall — to drop
  18. kid — child
  19. mate — a friend
  20. tube — a container
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. chest — a box
  24. fall — to drop

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