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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: fine · hand · fan · cold · wind · current · chip · mine

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. wind — moving air
  5. chip — to eat
  6. cold — an illness
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fine — high quality
  9. wind — moving air
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. current — electric
  13. current — happening now
  14. hand — help
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. fine — all right
  17. cold — not warm
  18. hand — in cards
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. mine — for digging
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. chip — for betting
  23. current — of water
  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