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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. key — the most important part
  3. hand — in cards
  4. row — a line
  5. pitch — completely
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. row — to paddle
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fall — to drop
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. perch — the fish
  12. key — in music
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. hand — help
  18. fall — the season
  19. tube — the underground
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. tube — a container
  22. key — for a lock
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — moving air

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