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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 · field · snap · stand · game · wound · rush · root

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. root — of a word
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. wound — an injury
  6. stand — to bear
  7. snap — to click
  8. game — a match
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. field — for sport
  14. field — a subject
  15. root — the cause
  16. wound — an injury
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. game — wild animals
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. field — farmland
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. root — of a plant
  24. rush — hurry

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