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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 116 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: march · fan · dip · net · rule · fall · wind · season

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. net — after costs
  3. net — in sport
  4. rule — a law
  5. season — in sport
  6. fall — the season
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. season — of the year
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. dip — to sink
  11. wind — moving air
  12. fall — to drop
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. net — for catching
  15. fall — to drop
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. march — the month
  18. rule — government
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. march — music
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. march — the month

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