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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: patient · fan · snap · sharp · jam · wind · band · calf

  1. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. sharp — clever
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. band — a music group
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. wind — moving air
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. band — a ring
  21. wind — moving air
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. snap — to click

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