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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: fan · chest · lash · wind · present · can

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. wind — moving air
  6. can — a tin
  7. chest — a box
  8. wind — moving air
  9. can — to be able to
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. can — a tin
  12. chest — of your body
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. present — there
  15. chest — of your body
  16. present — a gift
  17. present — the time now
  18. lash — a whip stroke

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