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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: plane · track · foot · net · rule · ground · tear · fan

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. ground — crushed
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. track — a path
  5. net — in sport
  6. rule — a law
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. track — to keep track
  9. track — a song
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. net — after costs
  12. tear — to rip
  13. foot — a measure
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. tear — from crying
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. ground — a position
  18. rule — government
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. tear — from crying
  22. plane — a tool
  23. ground — the earth
  24. net — for catching

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