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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. mug — to rob
  3. ground — the earth
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. wind — moving air
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. ground — a position
  8. kid — child
  9. mug — a face
  10. wind — moving air
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. mug — a cup
  14. ground — crushed
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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