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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 · pound · temple · ground · leaves · fall · tear · rush

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. ground — a position
  5. fall — to drop
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. tear — from crying
  12. rush — hurry
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. fall — to drop
  17. ground — the earth
  18. tear — from crying
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. ground — crushed
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. fall — the season
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. pound — a weight

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