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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 116 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: wake · fan · face · pitch · tube · plane · drill · calf

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. tube — a container
  5. drill — a practice
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. pitch — completely
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. drill — the tool
  11. tube — the underground
  12. drill — army training
  13. face — to confront
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. face — to point toward
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. face — part of the head
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. wake — a trail
  23. plane — a tool
  24. pitch — a sports field

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