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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 116 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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. ground — crushed
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. net — after costs
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. wind — moving air
  7. firm — decided
  8. wind — moving air
  9. ground — the earth
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. pitch — completely
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. firm — steady
  15. ground — a position
  16. firm — a company
  17. net — for catching
  18. net — in 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