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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: rush · mine · court · drill · snap · plane · fan · firm

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. mine — for digging
  3. court — of law
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. firm — steady
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. snap — to click
  8. drill — army training
  9. court — of a king
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. court — for sport
  15. drill — the tool
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. firm — a company
  18. drill — a practice
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. plane — a tool
  22. firm — decided
  23. rush — hurry
  24. fan — a supporter

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