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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: row · fan · spring · stand · saw · ball · band · last

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. spring — of water
  3. saw — the tool
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. saw — the tool
  7. stand — to bear
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. row — to paddle
  12. ball — a dance
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. spring — the season
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. last — final
  17. band — a ring
  18. last — to go on
  19. spring — a coil
  20. ball — a great time
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. row — a line
  23. band — a music group
  24. last — finally

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