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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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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. bat — the animal
  4. wind — moving air
  5. squash — to crush
  6. band — a ring
  7. fine — high quality
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. wake — a trail
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. band — a music group
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. fine — all right
  18. squash — the sport

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