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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: fork · band · wave · fan · hand · plane · land · bound

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. hand — in cards
  4. band — a ring
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. bound — tied together
  7. land — ground
  8. band — a music group
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. fork — in a road
  11. bound — certain
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. hand — help
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. land — a country
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. bound — obliged
  23. land — to come down
  24. plane — a tool

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