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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. spell — magic
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. wind — moving air
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. swing — music
  8. spell — letters
  9. swing — to play on
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. spell — a short time
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. cap — a hat
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. cap — a lid
  16. cap — of ice
  17. wind — moving air
  18. swing — in golf

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