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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: fan · sharp · face · mine · firm · bat · bank · fall

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. face — to point toward
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. face — to confront
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. fall — to drop
  7. firm — decided
  8. bank — for money
  9. bat — the animal
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. face — part of the head
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. mine — for digging
  17. firm — a company
  18. bank — for money
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. bank — of a river
  21. fall — the season
  22. firm — steady
  23. sharp — clever
  24. mine — an explosive

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