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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: cue · fan · saw · wind · chest · face · racket · land

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. cue — a signal
  4. land — ground
  5. chest — of your body
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. wind — moving air
  8. land — a country
  9. saw — the tool
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. face — to point toward
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. cue — a hint
  14. face — part of the head
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. cue — for pool
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. face — to confront
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. saw — the tool
  23. land — to come down
  24. chest — of your body

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