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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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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: field · temple · fan · pass · wind · spring

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. pass — a permit
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. field — for sport
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. spring — the season
  12. spring — of water
  13. field — farmland
  14. wind — moving air
  15. spring — a coil
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. wind — moving air
  18. field — a subject

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