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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: plane · bat · wound · bank · band · key · fan · present

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. wound — an injury
  3. key — for a lock
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. wound — an injury
  6. band — a ring
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. plane — a tool
  9. band — a music group
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. key — the most important part
  13. bank — for money
  14. present — a gift
  15. key — in music
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. present — there
  18. bank — for money
  19. bat — the animal
  20. bank — of a river
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. present — the time now
  24. bat — for baseball

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