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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 · chest · mate · cell · present · pop · rash · bank

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. chest — a box
  3. rash — a series
  4. chest — of your body
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. mate — a partner
  7. chest — of your body
  8. present — the time now
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. pop — to visit
  11. bank — for money
  12. mate — to breed
  13. pop — soda
  14. mate — a friend
  15. present — there
  16. present — a gift
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. cell — a phone
  19. bank — for money
  20. rash — hasty
  21. bank — of a river
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. pop — music
  24. cell — in biology

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