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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 · bound · lash · stand · tear · game · bass · hand

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. tear — to rip
  6. hand — help
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. tear — from crying
  9. tear — from crying
  10. bass — low music
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. game — a match
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. bound — tied together
  16. game — wild animals
  17. bass — the fish
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. hand — in cards
  20. bound — obliged
  21. stand — to bear
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. bound — certain
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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