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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 120 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
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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: object · fan · stand · spell · mine · staff · prune · game

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. object — to protest
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. staff — a stick
  5. spell — magic
  6. game — a match
  7. spell — letters
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. mine — for digging
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. spell — a short time
  12. staff — employees
  13. stand — to bear
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. object — a thing
  17. staff — employees
  18. object — an aim
  19. prune — to trim
  20. prune — to trim
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. game — wild animals

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