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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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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: wind · safe · straw · cell · pass · spring · tear · fan

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. spring — a coil
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. spring — of water
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. cell — a phone
  8. wind — moving air
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. wind — moving air
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. cell — in biology
  15. tear — from crying
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. spring — the season
  20. tear — to rip
  21. pass — a permit
  22. tear — from crying
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. safe — a strongbox

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