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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 120 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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. net — for catching
  3. file — a tool
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. lean — to bend
  6. last — to go on
  7. spring — the season
  8. spring — of water
  9. wind — moving air
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. snap — to click
  12. spring — a coil
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. last — final
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. net — after costs
  19. file — a line of people
  20. net — in sport
  21. last — finally
  22. file — a document
  23. lean — thin
  24. lean — to rest against

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