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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. rash — a series
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. branch — a division
  12. rash — hasty
  13. wound — an injury
  14. plane — a tool
  15. dip — to sink
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. wound — an injury
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. snap — to click
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. rash — on the skin

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