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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 · band · shower · nail · object · rash · trunk · bass

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. object — a thing
  6. object — an aim
  7. bass — low music
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. band — a music group
  10. object — to protest
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. rash — a series
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. bass — the fish
  15. shower — to wash
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. rash — hasty
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. shower — rain
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. trunk — of a tree

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