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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 120 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: spring · mine · rush · face · hand · charge · pound · fan

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  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. pound — for dogs
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. hand — in cards
  4. mine — for digging
  5. face — to confront
  6. rush — hurry
  7. spring — of water
  8. charge — in control
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. face — part of the head
  11. face — to point toward
  12. charge — a price
  13. spring — a coil
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. spring — the season
  19. hand — help
  20. pound — a weight
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. charge — electricity
  24. fan — a supporter

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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