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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 · hand · tube · prune · board · wound · bank · drill

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. hand — help
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. bank — for money
  6. wound — an injury
  7. drill — a practice
  8. drill — the tool
  9. drill — army training
  10. tube — the underground
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. wound — an injury
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. tube — a container
  16. bank — for money
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. board — a committee
  19. prune — to trim
  20. bank — of a river
  21. hand — in cards
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. board — to get on
  24. prune — to trim

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