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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: chair · fan · bound · plane · pitcher · wind · branch · fine

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. plane — a tool
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. wind — moving air
  7. bound — obliged
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. wind — moving air
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. fine — all right
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. chair — a leader
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. bound — certain
  20. fine — high quality
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. branch — a division
  24. bound — tied together

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