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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: branch · bay · hand · plane · fan · season · fall · tube

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. branch — a division
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. fall — the season
  5. fall — to drop
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. tube — a container
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. fall — to drop
  11. hand — in cards
  12. hand — help
  13. tube — the underground
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. season — of the year
  16. season — in sport
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. plane — a tool
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. branch — of a tree

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