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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 116 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: land · plane · game · wound · fan · bore · squash · rush

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. rush — hurry
  4. bore — to tire
  5. land — a country
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wound — an injury
  9. plane — a tool
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. bore — to drill
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. game — wild animals
  14. land — to come down
  15. squash — to crush
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. squash — the sport
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. game — a match
  24. plane — an aircraft

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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