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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wound — an injury
  3. mug — a cup
  4. shower — to wash
  5. can — a tin
  6. wind — moving air
  7. capital — a city
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. capital — money
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. mug — a face
  12. wake — a trail
  13. wound — an injury
  14. can — a tin
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. can — to be able to
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. mug — to rob
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. shower — rain
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. wind — to turn a key

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