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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: land · spell · fan · net · shower · wound · can · rush

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. can — a tin
  3. wound — an injury
  4. net — in sport
  5. land — a country
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. land — ground
  8. can — to be able to
  9. shower — to wash
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. net — after costs
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. land — to come down
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. spell — letters
  17. net — for catching
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. can — a tin
  20. shower — rain
  21. spell — a short time
  22. spell — magic
  23. rush — hurry
  24. wound — an injury

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