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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 · roll · plane · ball · snap · lie · wake · current

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. roll — a cake
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. roll — a list
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. current — electric
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. ball — a great time
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. snap — to click
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. current — of water
  15. ball — a dance
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. plane — a tool
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. lie — to recline
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. current — happening now
  23. wake — a trail
  24. plane — in geometry

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