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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. chip — for betting
  4. cold — not warm
  5. wind — moving air
  6. rash — hasty
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. suit — to fit
  10. rash — a series
  11. suit — in cards
  12. saw — the tool
  13. saw — the tool
  14. cold — an illness
  15. shower — rain
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. suit — clothes
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. shower — to wash
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. chip — to eat
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. leaves — to go away

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