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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 120 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: band · squash · cabinet · mine · fan · racket · suit · spring

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. mine — for digging
  3. spring — a coil
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. band — a ring
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. suit — in cards
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. squash — to crush
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. suit — to fit
  18. band — a music group
  19. spring — of water
  20. suit — clothes
  21. squash — the sport
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. spring — the season

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