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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 · mine · plane · deal · pop · court · fine · chest

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. pop — soda
  3. chest — of your body
  4. pop — to visit
  5. court — of law
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. court — of a king
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. chest — a box
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. deal — to handle
  15. mine — for digging
  16. chest — of your body
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. court — for sport
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. pop — music
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. plane — a tool
  24. fine — high quality

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