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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. fall — to drop
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. game — a match
  9. rash — a series
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. rash — hasty
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. wind — moving air
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. wind — moving air
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. fall — the season
  22. fall — to drop
  23. game — wild animals
  24. fan — a supporter

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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