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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: ball · fall · stem · season · mine · kid · hand · fan

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. kid — to tease
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. hand — in cards
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. hand — help
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. season — of the year
  14. kid — child
  15. stem — to come from
  16. fall — to drop
  17. season — in sport
  18. fall — the season
  19. mine — for digging
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. ball — a great time
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. ball — a dance

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