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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.

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: fan · fall · bat · wound · perch · mine · saw · mark

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. fall — to drop
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. saw — the tool
  5. saw — the tool
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. bat — the animal
  9. mark — a grade
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. wound — an injury
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. mark — a trace
  14. fall — the season
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. fall — to drop
  17. perch — the fish
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. mine — for digging
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. fan — a supporter

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