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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
468
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: rash · game · fall · wound · stand · cell · spring · fan

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. spring — a coil
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. spring — the season
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. game — wild animals
  9. cell — a phone
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. spring — of water
  13. fall — to drop
  14. stand — to bear
  15. fall — the season
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. game — a match
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. fall — to drop
  21. cell — in biology
  22. wound — an injury
  23. rash — a series
  24. rash — hasty

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