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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: spring · kid · firm · content · fan · bowl · row · bank

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. spring — of water
  4. content — happy
  5. spring — a coil
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. bank — for money
  11. row — to paddle
  12. firm — steady
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. kid — child
  16. firm — a company
  17. content — the amount
  18. row — a line
  19. kid — to tease
  20. bank — of a river
  21. bank — for money
  22. firm — decided
  23. spring — the season
  24. row — a quarrel

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