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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. wound — an injury
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. net — after costs
  6. track — to keep track
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. wind — moving air
  9. wound — an injury
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. track — a song
  12. net — for catching
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. track — a path
  15. kid — to tease
  16. net — in sport
  17. kid — child
  18. wind — moving air

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