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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: mouse · spring · mine · rush · fan · wind · date · present

  1. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. present — there
  5. mine — for digging
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. date — the fruit
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. rush — hurry
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. spring — of water
  14. present — a gift
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. spring — the season
  18. present — the time now
  19. wind — moving air
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. spring — a coil
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. wind — moving air

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