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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 · suit · stand · degree · season · net · file · mine

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. suit — to fit
  5. suit — clothes
  6. net — for catching
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. season — in sport
  10. degree — temperature
  11. degree — from a university
  12. mine — for digging
  13. file — a line of people
  14. net — in sport
  15. file — a tool
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. suit — in cards
  18. degree — an amount
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. file — a document
  21. net — after costs
  22. stand — to bear
  23. season — of the year
  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