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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: game · fan · sharp · ground · band · lie · wind · foot

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. ground — a position
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. lie — to recline
  6. game — a match
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. band — a ring
  11. game — wild animals
  12. sharp — clever
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. ground — the earth
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. wind — moving air
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. foot — a measure
  23. ground — crushed
  24. wind — moving air

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