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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: arm · mug · ground · shower · fan · saw · plane · file

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. shower — rain
  3. plane — a tool
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. ground — a position
  6. shower — to wash
  7. mug — a cup
  8. mug — to rob
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. file — a document
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. file — a tool
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. mug — a face
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. file — a line of people
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. saw — the tool
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. ground — the earth
  24. saw — the tool

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