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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 116 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: face · kid · firm · pit · fan · shower · mate · band

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. pit — a hole
  3. band — a music group
  4. firm — decided
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. mate — a friend
  7. face — part of the head
  8. band — a ring
  9. firm — steady
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. kid — child
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. mate — a partner
  14. mate — to breed
  15. shower — rain
  16. firm — a company
  17. shower — to wash
  18. pit — in a race
  19. face — to point toward
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. face — to confront
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. fan — a supporter

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