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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.

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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: shower · last · fork · fan · snap · stand · land · firm

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. shower — rain
  3. land — to come down
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. last — to go on
  7. shower — to wash
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. land — a country
  10. land — ground
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. firm — decided
  13. last — final
  14. firm — a company
  15. snap — to click
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. stand — to bear
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. fork — in a road
  22. firm — steady
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. last — finally

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