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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: fan · wound · craft · race · wind · band · tube · temple

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. tube — a container
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. race — the arms race
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. wound — an injury
  8. craft — a skill
  9. race — a contest
  10. wind — moving air
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. band — a music group
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. race — humankind
  20. wound — an injury
  21. craft — boats
  22. tube — the underground
  23. wind — moving air
  24. fan — a supporter

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