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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: snap · jam · hand · shower · field · pound · staff · fan

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. pound — a weight
  4. shower — to wash
  5. staff — a stick
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. hand — help
  9. staff — employees
  10. field — a subject
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. field — farmland
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. staff — employees
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. hand — in cards
  20. field — for sport
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. shower — rain
  23. snap — to click
  24. jam — to spread on bread

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