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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: can · rash · game · fan · current · chest

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. can — a tin
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. current — electric
  5. game — wild animals
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. rash — a series
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. chest — of your body
  10. can — to be able to
  11. chest — of your body
  12. can — a tin
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. current — of water
  16. chest — a box
  17. current — happening now
  18. game — a match

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