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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. wind — moving air
  3. mug — to rob
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. roll — a cake
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bore — to drill
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. snap — to click
  11. mug — a face
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. fall — to drop
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. fall — the season
  19. fall — to drop
  20. roll — a list
  21. rock — a stone
  22. vault — a safe
  23. bore — to tire
  24. mug — a cup

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