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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. degree — an amount
  3. wind — moving air
  4. net — in sport
  5. wind — moving air
  6. kid — child
  7. kid — to tease
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. net — after costs
  10. net — for catching
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. degree — from a university
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. board — a committee
  15. degree — temperature
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. board — to get on

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