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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.

Make a worksheet

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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. ground — a position
  3. mug — to rob
  4. squash — the sport
  5. ground — crushed
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. hand — help
  8. wind — moving air
  9. hand — in cards
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. mug — a face
  13. spell — a short time
  14. mug — a cup
  15. squash — to crush
  16. ground — the earth
  17. spell — letters
  18. spell — magic

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