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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: fan · temple · board · wound · ball · coach · shower · ground

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. wound — an injury
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. ground — a position
  8. ground — the earth
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. board — a committee
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. ball — a dance
  14. ground — crushed
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. ball — a great time
  18. shower — to wash
  19. wound — an injury
  20. board — to get on
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. shower — rain
  24. fan — to cool the air

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