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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 120 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: suit · hand · nail · fan · wind · wound · cold · cap

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. wound — an injury
  4. cap — a lid
  5. cap — of ice
  6. cold — an illness
  7. hand — in cards
  8. suit — clothes
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. hand — help
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. suit — to fit
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. wind — moving air
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. cold — not warm
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. wind — moving air
  19. suit — in cards
  20. cap — a hat
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. wound — an injury

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