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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: pit · fan · craft · wind · band · wave · net · bark

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. wind — moving air
  8. pit — in a race
  9. net — for catching
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. pit — a hole
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. craft — a skill
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. net — after costs
  19. bark — to shout
  20. net — in sport
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. band — a music group
  24. band — a ring

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