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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 · can · content · mine · cap · wind · chair · vault

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. chair — a leader
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. content — the amount
  8. content — happy
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. can — a tin
  12. cap — a lid
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. wind — moving air
  15. cap — of ice
  16. wind — moving air
  17. mine — for digging
  18. can — to be able to
  19. vault — a safe
  20. can — a tin
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. cap — a hat

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