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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: chest · kick · ball · wave · band · wound · branch · fan

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. band — a music group
  4. kick — in football
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. branch — a division
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. chest — a box
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. chest — of your body
  16. wound — an injury
  17. ball — a great time
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. ball — a dance
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. chest — of your body
  24. wound — an injury

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