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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wind — moving air
  3. stock — shares
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. face — part of the head
  6. stock — goods
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. fall — to drop
  10. rash — hasty
  11. face — to point toward
  12. fall — the season
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. pound — a weight
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. face — to confront
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. rash — a series
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. scale — size or range
  23. scale — in music
  24. fall — to drop

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