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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: wind · spell · plane · bat · land · object · fine · current

  1. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. object — to protest
  4. wind — moving air
  5. spell — a short time
  6. current — of water
  7. plane — a tool
  8. object — an aim
  9. land — to come down
  10. land — a country
  11. land — ground
  12. bat — the animal
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. current — electric
  15. fine — all right
  16. current — happening now
  17. spell — magic
  18. wind — moving air
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. fine — high quality
  22. spell — letters
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. plane — in geometry

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