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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: net · bass · fan · band · wind · foot · swing · face

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. net — for catching
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. foot — a measure
  5. swing — in golf
  6. face — to point toward
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. swing — to play on
  9. net — after costs
  10. net — in sport
  11. wind — moving air
  12. swing — music
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. face — to confront
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. band — a ring
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. bass — the fish
  19. band — a music group
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. wind — moving air
  23. face — part of the head
  24. bass — low music

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